BSNL 4G Services Expected to Launch Soon as DoT Grants Permission to Acquire Airwaves

Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited’s plan of acquiring 4G airwaves has been cleared by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) as per the latest report. The state-owned telco while on the lookout for launching 4G services in India had compiled and submitted a detailed project report to get the airwaves in the 2100Mhz band for starting 4G services in India. At present, the spectrum’s cost stands at Rs 13,885 crore. To let the deal go through, BSNL was seeking Rs 6,652 crore as equity infusion from the government while it planned to bring the rest of the amount using the revenue it generates in the next ten years.

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Spectrum Payment Term Extended from 10 to 16 Years

In a related development, based on inter-ministerial group’s (IMG) recommendations, the highest decision-making body in India, Telecom Commission extended the duration of spectrum payments from 10 to 16 years. This comes as a relief for the state-owned telco as the payment terms have been revised from 10 years to 16 annual instalments. BSNL Chairman, Anupam Shrivastava told ET, “The telecom department has accepted our proposal and is in the process to allow spectrum in the 2100 Mhz band to run 4G services.” Following the acquisition of the new airwaves in this band, BSNL will be finally able to launch Long Term Evolution (LTE) services in India.

BSNL 4G Process Slated to Finish in 80 Days

Telecom Minister, Manoj Sinha has also participated in hurrying up the airwaves allocation process as Anupam Shrivastava informed. In a recent meeting with the top DoT officials, the telecom minister has set an 80-days timeframe to complete the entire process. This deadline means that finally, the government-led telco will be able to hasten the process of availing 4G services.