The subscriber base in India is expected to go up to 100 million within 18 months if the telecom industry invests around Rs 50,000 crore (Rs Rs 500 billion).

Pradip Baijal, chairman, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, in his keynote address at the telecommunication and information technology international trade show and conference said, "If Rs 50,000 crore is invested in the telecom industry, then in a year-and-half India will have a subscriber base moving up from 26 million to 100 million."

Baijal said that there is enough space for telecom operators and a huge market in India. He pointed out that this year in October about 10 lakh (1 million) subscribers were added compared with about 200,000 subscribers added in the same month last year.

He pointed out that the Indian financial institutions have made sanctions worth Rs 8,000 crore (Rs Rs 80 billion) in the sector.

Of which, only Rs 5,000 crore (Rs 50 billion) has been taken, while there is an outstanding of Rs 3,000 crore (Rs 30 billion), he added.

"For the telecom industry, it is the depreciation which leads to losses. Operator can reduce losses if he can handle depreciation," Baijal added.

On the sidelines of the conference, Baijal said that there is a cost involved in case of number portability.

"We are looking at a very workable model and costs will be looked," he said

In number portability, a subscriber can move from one service provider to the other without changing his/her mobile number.

Meanwhile, Bhagwan Khurana, group president, Reliance Infocomm said that the company will make payments for unified license within a fortnight.