Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has tested its 4G networks in Bijapur. The telco said that 1018 villages will soon experience enhanced mobile connectivity. BSNL also said that it will connect the district and tehsil offices with satellite soon to streamline communications. This will help with bridging the digital divide. Also, the 4G networks that BSNL is deploying are 5G ready.
The state-run telecom operator is deploying homegrown technology provided by a TCS (Tata Consultancy Services) led consortium including C-DoT (Centre for Development of Telematics) and Tejas Networks. The work of deployment is ongoing in many parts of the country, where the telco is first conducting tests to ensure the efficiency and effectiveness of the networks.
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In the recent reports, it was said that BSNL is facing issues with the core that C-DoT has provided. The telco has deployed the equipment provided by Tejas Networks, but it is still running on the legacy network core. Once C-DoT provides a 4G core that is working as it should, BSNL will start operating 4G for users across many parts of the country.
The first target for BSNL is to launch 4G in 1 lakh sites. This will take some time, approximately two years. Without 4G, BSNL has been losing its customers to private telcos. This is evident from the decline in mobile services revenue in FY24.
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At the same time, BSNL is doing pretty well in the home broadband or the FTTH (fiber-to-the-home) segment. The state-run telecom company has said that the technology that it is deploying for 4G is also upgradable to 5G. The central government has already reserved spectrum for BSNL which will help the telco in offering both 4G and 5G services in the future.
