State-run telco BSNL has now launched 4G services in Kolkata circle. BSNL 4G is now available in Kolkata across different regions like Barabazar, Esplanade and 2nd Bridge (Hoogly Bridge). Furthermore, the telco has also started issuing 4G SIM cards in the circle, so every 3G/2G customer of BSNL should upgrade their SIM card to enjoy high-speed data services. BSNL is expected to officially announce 4G services in select telecom circles by the end of March 2020 and Kolkata might be one of them. The government-owned telco is already testing the 4G services in various circles like Kerala, Karnataka, Chennai, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh & Telangana. In some circles, it even launched 4G plans offering up to 10GB data per day at an affordable price. The information regarding BSNL 4G launch in Kolkata comes from our reader Subhendu Das.
BSNL 4G Now Live in Kolkata Telecom Circle
According to our reader, he checked the BSNL 4G availability in three regions- Barabazar, Esplanade and 2nd Bridge (Hoogly Bridge). But there might be more regions in Kolkata where BSNL 4G is ready. According to our sources, BSNL is testing 4G network in Kolkata circle and the full-fledged rollout may happen by the end of this financial year. Already, the telecom equipment required for rolling out BSNL 4G services arrived at the Kolkata Telephone Bhavan which is located near Lal Bazar.
In addition to the 4G service rollout, BSNL has started issuing 4G SIM cards to its customers. Users with a BSNL 3G/2G SIM card can head over to the nearest BSNL store to get a 4G SIM card. After tele verification, their BSNL 4G SIM card will be activated, post which if the region has the 4G network, then it will surely latch onto the same. The BSNL 4G USIM cost is absolutely zero for the users who're upgrading from a 3G or a 2G SIM card.
As for the BSNL 4G speeds in Kolkata, our reader has managed to achieve a maximum download speed of 17.9 Mbps and the upload speed is surprisingly on the decent side at 7.37 Mbps. In another speed test, the speeds achieved were 10.8 Mbps download and 1.97 Mbps upload. Having said that, the 4G speeds in Kolkata are decent for now, but once the telco launches the service commercially, the speeds will gradually go down.
BSNL 4G Plans Start at Just Rs 96
In some circles where BSNL 4G is already available, the telco is providing 4G plans to the customers starting at just Rs 96. These 4G plans will be made available to the users in Kolkata circle as well very soon. The two 4G STVs in question are Rs 96 and Rs 236 which ship with 10GB data per day for a period of 28 days and 84 days, respectively. Having said that, these are just data STVs, so the company is not bundling any voice calling or SMS benefits.
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These 4G plans are currently available for BSNL 4G subscribers in some circles like Maharashtra, Kerala and Chennai. As we have recently reported, BSNL already has more than one lakh 4G subscribers in Maharashtra alone. Since BSNL 4G is one of the much-awaited network upgrades, subscribers are also showing interest for the same. It will be interesting to see when BSNL officially launches 4G network across the country.
