BSNL Targets September Rollout for 5G in Delhi, Key Cities: Report

State-owned telecom operator Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) is expected to launch 5G services in Delhi and other select cities by the end of September, senior officials said on Friday, according to a Business Standard report. The company has already conducted 5G technology tests at several newly installed 4G sites, which are part of its ongoing plan to deploy one lakh 4G towers nationwide.

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Also Read: BSNL Eyes Subscriber Growth with Competitive Tariffs and Free 5G Services

BSNL 5G Trials Underway

According to officials, BSNL has activated 5G services at sites in major state capitals including Jaipur, Lucknow, Chandigarh, Bhopal, Kolkata, Patna, Hyderabad, and Chennai. Most of these are newly installed 4G sites under the first phase of the 1 lakh sites deployment, the officials quoted in the report said.

“A stepwise plan will be implemented to roll out 5G across telecom circles, after the first 1 lakh towers are found to be operating optimally and meeting quality-of-service requirements,” an official reportedly said. The strategy mirrors BSNL’s earlier circle-wise 4G rollout, which was completed in all four metro cities before December 2024.

Also Read: Around 70,000 BSNL 4G Towers Out of 1 Lakh Are Now Active and Performing Better

Second Phase of 4G Tower Installation

As of May 2025, BSNL has installed over 93,000 4G towers, with more than 70,000 currently operational. The telco plans to initiate a second phase of deployment involving another one lakh towers. The 4G rollout, which began significantly later than private players like Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, and Vodafone Idea, had been delayed multiple times, leading to a decline in BSNL’s customer base. Its mobile services market share stood at 7.82 percent in May 2025.