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TN telecom heads for significant consolidation

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Our Regional Bureau Chennai
Last Updated : Feb 25 2013 | 11:28 PM IST
A significant consolidation of telecom operations in Tamil Nadu was announced today by the Union minister for Communications and IT Dayanidhi Maran.
 
At a ceremony to mark the expansion of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited's (BSNL's) telecom infrastructure in South India, Maran said consolidation would be effected in Tamil Nadu for both landline operations and mobile operations. For mobile operations, the Chennai and Tamil Nadu circles are to be merged effective October 1 and referred to as Tamil Nadu circle.
 
In the landline space, Chennai circle is to be merged with seven surrounding Short Distance Charging Areas (SDCAs) and form part of a greater Chennai circle. The seven SDCAs that are to be merged cover manufacturing locations for companies such as Hyundai Motors and Brakes India. Among the SDCAs that will be merged is the Thiruvallur SDCA.
 
The Chennai and Tamil Nadu telecom circles for mobile operations are to be merged because the service providers are common to both the circles, said Maran.
 
Maran added that a similar merger could not be effected between Mumbai and Maharashtra telecom circles, and Kolkata and West Bengal circles because all the service providers between each metro and the relevant state are not common.
 
Commonality of service providers has been described in a way that would accommodate the merger. It follows the acquisition of BPL Mobile Cellular's Tamil Nadu circle operations by the Essar Group.
 
Essar Group was already present in the Chennai circle through the entity Hutchison Essar, its joint venture with Hutchison Whampoa. For the purpose of the merger, Hutchison Essar and Essar Group have been deemed to be a common service provider.
 
The other service providers in the merged circles will be the state owned BSNL, Bharti Tele group and Aircel group.
 
In addition to the consolidation, BSNL's GSM infrastructure in Tamil Nadu is also set to expand. BSNL's Tamil Nadu operations will receive additional infrastructure to handle another 1.28 million connections in the near future.
 
The consolidated Tamil Nadu circle is to eventually have infrastructure to handle about 2.6 million GSM connections, as against the current level of about 1.3 million.
 
Earlier in the month BSNL officials said the company which has 315 towers in Chennai will increase it to about 700 towers by January 2006 at a cost of Rs 150 crore. In all, 477 towns in Tamil Nadu would be covered for the first time by an GSM network, said Maran.

 
 

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First Published: Aug 18 2005 | 12:00 AM IST

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