The revenue prospective for the administration from the continuing 3G auctions hit the Rs 45,000-crore mark on May 06.

The proceeds comprise the sum to be paid by nationalized telephone companies BSNL and MTNL after the auctions are completed.

The pan-India bid price arrived at Rs 11,327.44 crore on Thursday, which was up 224% as against the original base price stood at Rs 3,500 crore.

With this, the income guaranteed to the administration climbed up to Rs 45,691.66 crore.

Telecom minister A Raja recently stated that the income from the 3G and broadband wireless access (BWA) auction could reach Rs 55,000.

Mumbai and Delhi were the most desired circles among the operators, with Mumbai registering the maximum bid-price of Rs 1,986.69 crore, accompanied by Delhi with Rs 1,920.02 crore.

Nine telecom operators in India comprising Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Essar, RCom and Tata Tele, are in battle to get hold of the 3G-service license across 22 circles in India.

The administration is auctioning 3 slots of 3G airwaves in 17 telecom circles and four in the remaining five, comprising Punjab, West Bengal, Bihar, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir.

The auction for BWA spectrum is likely to be as competitive with 11 players, over 9 in case 3G, bidding for just two slots in 22 circles across India. (With Inputs from Agencies)