It's been a while since Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has been saying about the launch of its 4G services in the country, but it didn't happen until now. However, it's expected to change very soon as the telco has now introduced 4G USIM priced at just Rs 20. Earlier, when BSNL introduced 3G services in India, they picked the USIM at Rs 200, however, the price of the 4G USIM is now 10% of the previous price at Rs 20. Since 2014, BSNL has been promising the 4G services rollout and has been asking the government to allot 4G spectrum, so that it can go head-on-head with private telecom operators who are offering 4G services at cheaper prices in the country. BSNL has said that it will provide 10,000 4G eNode-Bs in the North, South, East and West zones very soon. The telco has already commissioned its first 4G tower in Karnataka.
Subscribers of BSNL who would like to transition to 4G services and take full benefit of the new network will need to exchange their existing SIM for the new 4G USIM. It is notable that subscribers will be unable to access the 4G network via their old 2G/3G SIMs. The plagued days of BSNL are finally over, and after a lot of clarifications, only the new 4G USIM card which will be introduced in the market will have more slots to work in all 2G/3G and 4G in various circles in the country. The BSNL SIM cards (4G USIM) come regardless of memory size and are of fourth form factor, same as the existing 4G SIM cards of other telcos.
This new low price of the 4G SIM cards by Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited is bound to increase the awareness among people about the new 4G network and is also expected to bring some subs in for the company. BSNL has already started their 4G network in states like Kerala and Karnataka is planning to complete their setup of the 4G in the entire country by year-end. Also, it is worth noting that the effective price of Rs 20 of the new USIMs will be applicable starting April 9, 2018.
Do make a note that BSNL has not launched 4G services in the country yet and there's a fight going on between the state-run telco and the government for the allocation of 4G spectrum to the telecom operator. A while back, BSNL launched 4G services in Kerala circle with the existing 3G spectrum, and they commissioned the first 4G tower in Karnataka state.
