MUMBAI: The date of the pre-bid conference for Selection of e-Auctioneer Request for Proposal (RFP) for the e-auction of FM channels in FM Radio Phase-III is out. It will be held on 20 May 2014 at 3 pm in Shastri Bhawan, stated the note issued by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (I&B).

The note on the time of the conference has been announced on the website of I&B ministry which is undersigned by CS Kaushik, Deputy Secretary (FM) I&B ministry.

It was predicated that the e-auctions will take place after June this year, once the Lok-sabha election is complete and the new government is formed. The bidders are invited in two parts, technical and financial. The pro forma detailing requirements placed on the website of the Information and Broadcasting Ministry noted that the bids should be submitted by 2.30 pm on 20 June.

The auctions will be on the basis of the detailed guidelines which had been issued on 25 July 2011.

In April 2014, the Government invited RFP to select the agency for conducting the e-auction of FM channels in FM Radio Phase-III for 839 channels in 294 cities.

Last September, I&B minister Manish Tewari had announced that the Phase III auction of FM radio would start in October 2013.