NEW DELHI: State-owned telecom operator Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) will soon launch 4G services across the country and work on this going on in full swing, said Minister of State for Communications Devusinh Chauhan on Tuesday.
The minister said the firm will deploy 1 lakh 4G sites across the country. “The Group of Ministers (GoM’s) approved the deployment of 1 lakh BSNL 4G sites in the country. Now, the 4G work is underway and various sites have been identified. The government is keen that the services should start soon,” he added.
The 4G rollout by BSNL has been getting delayed as the telco planned to rollout its 4G network with indigenous technology. In November 2022, TCS, a part of Tata Group and state-run ITI Limited submitted their bids to deploy the BSNL’s next-generation network across four zones countrywide, following the proof of concept (PoC).
Now TCS will supply 4G equipment for 100,000 sites for a sum of close to Rs 24500 crore that includes network gear for about Rs 13,000 crore, as well as third-party items and a 10-year annual maintenance contract (AMC).
“The telco is coming with indigenous 4G technology, therefore it took time. After 4G, BSNL will upgrade to 5G,” said the minister. He while speaking on the sidelines of an event to announce a tripartite Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) among India Post, CAIT and Tripta Technologies for logistics services, also said the 5G rollouts in the country is the fastest in the world.