The much-awaited BSNL 4G services will be launched in Mangaluru city today. A new report says the launch will happen at 8:30 AM on Thursday after which Mangaluru will be the fifth district in Karnataka state to offer 4G services. BSNL already launched 4G services in four other districts of Karnataka. According to a TNN report, the launch of BSNL 4G in Mangaluru has been delayed by five months. But sadly, Karnataka's capital state Bengaluru is yet to get BSNL 4G services and there's a reason behind the delayed launch. BSNL wants to test 4G services in smaller cities first before rolling it out in populated cities like Bengaluru. It is also reported that the 3G to 4G SIM conversion rate stood at 37% as of January 21.
BSNL 4G to Be Available Mangaluru City Starting Today
Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has been talking about launching 4G services for more than two years now. The state-run telco launched the first 4G network in Kerala nearly 18 months ago using the existing 3G spectrum. We first heard about BSNL 4G in Karnataka back in March 2018 when the telco commissioned first 4G tower at Ambedkar Bhawan, Shivamogga city. Right now, BSNL 4G services are available in four districts of Karnataka state, and now, Mangaluru city will be joining the list.
As of this writing, BSNL 4G services are already available in Kalaburagi, Bidar, Raichur and Vijayapura, which will be followed by Mangaluru today. The TNN report says BSNL is expanding the service launch to Mangaluru because of the positive response it received in the already launched districts. BSNL 4G in Mangaluru city will be launched by the local MP Nalin Kumar Kateel today.
Moving onto other details, BSNL already converted 151 towers in Mangaluru to 4G towers. Furthermore, the telco has reformed the 2100 MHz spectrum band which is used for offering 3G services to strengthen its 4G network. The government-owned PSU is deploying L900 technology in 2100 MHz band to complement the 4G services.
"When activated, 4G services would be seamlessly available from Uchila till Nethravathi bridge in Mangaluru, a distance of about 50km, and till Farangipete on the Mangaluru-Bengaluru National Highway," the report says. And as we know, when BSNL 4G is not available, customers will be moved to 3G automatically. Unlike in Kerala where BSNL has shut down 3G network completely, Mangaluru BSNL users will be able to latch onto the 3G network in the case of 4G availability
BSNL to Launch 4G Services in Bengaluru Very Soon
Bengaluru, being the capital city of Karnataka, is yet to receive 4G services from BSNL. The reason behind this is the telco wants to test the services in less populated cities first before heading to the populated city Bengaluru. With BSNL 4G already available in four districts and one city in Karnataka state, it will be a matter of time we see the telco launching it in Bengaluru as well. The report did not provide any timeline on when BSNL 4G will be launched in Bengaluru.
After Kerala, Karnataka is the amongst the biggest telecom circles for BSNL, but the lack of 4G services is hitting the telco badly. BSNL is expected to launch 4G in 20 telecom circles by March 2020, but it seems like we are in for another delayed launch as the DoT is yet to allocate spectrum required to the telco.
