Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), a state-run Indian telecom operator, is now serving millions of 4G customers through its network. The special thing about BSNL's 4G is that it is powered by indigenous technology. BSNL has more than 22 million customers who are using its 4G now. The state-run telecom company is commissioning to 97,500 4G towers throughout India, as confirmed by telecom minister, Jyotiraditya Scindia.
India is now amongst the select countries in the world which has the capability of launching fully indigenous 4G services. The 4G services by the telco were inaugurated by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on September 27, 2025.
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In a release, the government said, "BSNL’s indigenous 4G services are expected to benefit tribal regions, remote villages, and hilly areas by providing access to quality digital services. This will enable children in rural areas to attend online classes, farmers in distant locations to check crop prices, and patients to consult doctors through telemedicine. Additionally, the initiative will greatly support armed forces personnel by enhancing secure communication through improved connectivity."
BSNL has the most affordable 4G prepaid plans in the country. The company will also launch 5G services in the near future. The 4G network of the state-run telco has about 22 million customers using the services, and while it seems like a big number, it is not. Vodafone Idea, which has the least number of 4G subscribers amongst the private telcos, still has about 126-127 million 4G users.
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Compared to this, BSNL has only about 20% of the 4G users that BSNL has, and as compared to Jio and Airtel, it's an even smaller percentage. But this still presents an opportunity for the company to garner some market share from the competition.
