Bharti Airtel today announced its massive network expansion plans for FY 2018-19 in Maharashtra & Goa circle. Airtel is amongst the leading telecom operators in the circle and is now looking to further expand its high-speed mobile data footprint. As a part of its network expansion program, Project Leap, Airtel today revealed that it's going to add more than 8000 new mobile sites in the fiscal year, along with an addition of more than 4200 kms of optic fibre in Maharashtra & Goa. The massive rollout would mean the addition of one new site per hour to Airtel’s future-ready network.
In the FY 2017-18, Airtel added more than 7000 new sites and rolled out more than 2600 kms of optic fibre in the circle, taking the overall broadband footprint to 27000 towns and villages.
With this planned rollout, the number of Airtel’s mobile sites in Maharashtra & Goa would go up by 25% to 38,000, further enhancing the speeds and voice qualities. The addition of fresh optic fibre would extend its fibre backbone to 21,600 kms, supporting the growth of high-speed data services in the region.
Rohit Marwha, Chief Executive Officer – Maharashtra & Goa, Bharti Airtel, adds, “We are committed to offer our customers in Maharashtra & Goa a seamless experience on the best smartphone network. We will continue to invest aggressively in the region and expand our network capabilities with over 38,000 sites by the end of this financial year. With our enhanced speeds, reach and coverage, we also aim to contribute towards the Government’s vision of Digital India.”
To give a brief idea about Bharti Airtel in Maharashtra & Goa, the telco launched 4G services on 2300 MHz in April 2012, which was later on followed by 4G services on 1800 MHz in February last year. Maharashtra & Goa was amongst the first circles to receive Airtel VoLTE services. Currently, Airtel has 31,000 sites, 17,400 kms fibre backbone and covering 40,000 towns & villages.