BSNL has been tasked with ensuring connectivity in all remote areas as part of the government's 4G saturation plan. In 2022, the Union Cabinet approved a project aimed at saturating 4G mobile services across all villages in the country that lacked coverage. Now, as part of this initiative, the Jammu and Kashmir Government's Revenue Department has issued an order dated August 25, 2023, facilitating the transfer of land to BSNL (a Government of India Enterprise) for the purpose of enabling 4G mobile service saturation in previously underserved villages throughout the Jammu and Kashmir region.
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Land Transfer for 4G Saturation
The government order states, "Sanction is hereby accorded to the transfer of land measuring 37 Kanal 07 Sarsai at 93 different locations in favour of BSNL for saturation of 5G mobile services in district Reasi, Udhampur, Doda, Shopian, Baramulla, Pulwama, Ramban, Kishtwar and Rajouri in terms of authorization pursuant to Administrative Council Decision No March 26, 2023."
Conditions and Authorization
As outlined in the order, the land transfer is executed on an "as is where is" basis and is designated exclusively for the objective of facilitating 4G mobile service saturation by BSNL. This usage is contingent upon obtaining all necessary permissions required for construction.
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In April, the Administrative Council, led by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, granted approval for the land transfer, an integral step toward realising the saturation of 4G mobile services in previously uncovered villages across Jammu and Kashmir.
Having gained approval from the Union Cabinet in July of the preceding year, the 4G Saturation project commenced implementation in February 2023. To finance this ambitious endeavor, the government earmarked Rs 26,316 crore from the Universal Service Obligation Fund. As previously reported by TelecomTalk, the project is anticipated to be completed within a 500-day timeframe.
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BSNL Wireless Subscriber Base
In a related development, BSNL witnessed a decline of approximately 1.8 million subscribers during the month of June 2023, resulting in a total subscriber count of 99,476,822 (approximately 99.5 million), which falls just below the 100 million subscriber milestone. As highlighted by TelecomTalk, BSNL's subscriber count slipped below the 100 million mark during this period.
