 "BSNL")
After Punjab, state-run BSNL has chosen Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Tamil Nadu, among other southern states, to be the first to receive 4G services when they are launched in December, officials said.
The company has mapped large parts of these states for tower installation, they added. This includes more than 4,200 4G sites in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. “In many places, 4G equipment is being installed in new towers under the Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) of the department of telecommunications (DoT),” an official said. The fund is the central government’s primary source of capital for building telecom infrastructure.
The company is keen on launching 4G services in telecom circles with higher revenue, and southern states figure in that list.
The company has been experiencing major subscriber losses in circles such as Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Chennai due to lack of 4G services. It is also hoping to incentivise existing users to retain BSNL services in circles where revenue has risen recently. As part of the pilot for 4G, the company had deployed 200 sites in three districts of Punjab. Now, it plans to install 3,000 4G towers in the state.
A pilot has also been run in Haryana.
Late rollout
BSNL plans to launch 4G services have been repeatedly delayed. They come years after 4G roll out by the three private telecom service providers — Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea. BSNL officials have said the latest deadline of December can be kept as operational challenges are being quickly sorted.
The BSNL board and later a group of ministers had cleared a Rs 24,500-crore contract to a TCS-led consortium, which includes Centre for Development of Telematics (CDOT) and Tejas Networks, to provide 4G equipment for 100,000 new telecom towers. Network gear for about Rs 13,000 crore, as well as third-party items and a 10-year annual maintenance contract (AMC) are also covered in the contract. In June, the company issued an advance purchase order (APO) of around Rs 19,000 crore to TCS and government-run ITI Limited for the equipment.
BSNL has begun offering free 4G SIM upgrades to its users in select circles. The upgrade from a 2G/3G SIM will also provide users with complimentary 4G data and three months of validity.
5G plans
In all these circles, the company plans to quickly upgrade 4G services to 5G by June 2024. BSNL may begin advanced testing of 5G network equipment by February 2024, Business Standard had reported last week. CDOT is working to ensure this.
The government had first announced a Rs 69,000-crore revival package for BSNL and MTNL in October 2019. Last year, it approved a second revival package for BSNL and MTNL amounting to Rs 1.64 trillion.
The move led to BSNL’s authorised capital increasing to Rs 2.1 trillion, from Rs 1.5 trillion. The Union Cabinet also approved allotting 4G and 5G spectrum to BSNL through equity infusion.
In June, the Cabinet granted the telco Rs 89,047 crore as part of a third revival package.
As a result, BSNL has started earning operating profits since FY22. Its total debt has reduced from Rs 32,944 crore to Rs 22,289 crore.
