State-run telco BSNL is leaving no stone unturned when it comes to competing with private telecom operators. To compete with Reliance Jio, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited has come up with two new annual prepaid plans of Rs 1,699 and Rs 2,099. Both the plans offer benefits for 365 days and the benefits include data, voice calling, text messages and PRBT. That said, BSNL has managed to beat Jio yet again as it's shipping more data benefit than the latter with the Rs 1,699 recharge. For the unaware, Reliance Jio recently launched a new prepaid plan of Rs 1,699 offering benefits for a year and to compete with this plan, BSNL has introduced two new plans. BSNL is launching these plans under Diwali Mahadhamaka scheme and calling the recharges as 'Recharge se Azadi.'
BSNL Diwali Mahadhamaka Prepaid Recharges Introduced: Details and Benefits
As mentioned, BSNL has come up with two new prepaid plans of Rs 1,699 and Rs 2,099 respectively. Talking about the Rs 1,699 tariff plan first, it ships with a total of 2GB data per day along with an after FUP speed of 80 Kbps. The plan also offers unlimited local, STD and national roaming calls even to the numbers located in Mumbai and Delhi circles. Further, it provides 100 SMSes per day and free hello tune for a period of 365 days.
Moving onto the Rs 2,099 tariff plan, it offers a user 4GB data per day along with an after FUP speed of 80 Kbps. Like the Rs 1,699 prepaid recharge, the Rs 2,099 also gives unlimited voice calling to any network located within India, 100 text messages per day and free PRBT for 365 days.
According to the information we have, these two will be effective on a pan-India basis from October 29, 2018. Also, these plans have been introduced on an open market basis, not on a promotional basis. Generally, BSNL launches new tariff plans on a promotional basis meaning they'll be valid for only 90 days from the date of introduction.
BSNL Rs 1,699 Prepaid Recharge vs Reliance Jio Rs 1,699 Plan
BSNL has come up with these two tariff plans so that it can compete with Reliance Jio which also introduced a Rs 1,699 annual prepaid plan. The Rs 1,699 plan from Jio gives a total of 1.5GB data per day with an after FUP speed of 40 Kbps, 100 SMS per day and unlimited voice calls to any network in the country. On the whole, Jio's giving a total of 547.5GB of 4G data for one year.
In contrast, BSNL is providing a total of 730GB with its prepaid plan of Rs 1,699, while the Rs 2,099 prepaid plan ships with 1460GB of data. Sadly, BSNL's data benefit can be consumed only on 2G or 3G networks as the telco is yet to launch 4G services in India. Right now, BSNL is looking for the granting of 4G airwaves from DoT. Once it acquires 4G airwaves, the telco will compete with private telecom operators such as Airtel, Jio and Vodafone Idea head on.
Yearly Prepaid Plans: New Industry Trend?
Since the arrival of Jio to the Indian market, we have seen a lot of changes, especially in the tariff structure. Before Jio, telcos did not offer any combo prepaid plans, but once Jio entered, it's all about combo prepaid plans. Firstly, telcos launched prepaid plans with up to three months of validity, then it slowly became six months. Now, Jio seems to have started a new trend with its Rs 1,699 yearly plan. It's entirely possible that Airtel and Vodafone Idea will soon come out with yearly prepaid plans to lure the customers, and at the same time, to lock them for a year.
