Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) isn't looking to hike tariffs even after the launch of 4G in India. While there's no saying when 4G will arrive, the good thing for BSNL consumers is that they won't have to pay anything extra for it. BSNL plans to aggressively roll out 4G sites starting in October. There's no confirmation on whether that is happening right now. The state-run telco launched beta 4G sites in Punjab to test the equipment and networks in real-world environment a few months back.
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One of the Directors on BSNL's board had said that BSNL has no plans to increase the tariffs. This statement came back in July. As per a report from TheHindu, Sandeep Govil, a company board director, said that BSNL will start receiving the equipment in September or October and the company plans to deploy 1 lakh BTS in one year. Further, the director said that the equipment is 5G upgradable so BSNL can also upgrade to 5G within one year.
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BSNL will likely start upgrading its sites to 4G in its best-performing circles first. Areas such as Punjab and Kerala are expected to get it before any other state. The state-run telco's 4G will be priced in the competitive zone so that BSNL can recover from the loss it has seen in the wireless subscriber market share.
However, it is worth noting that while BSNL doesn't plan to increase prices directly, it has been increasing them indirectly. For many plans over the last year, BSNL has reduced the benefits while keeping the price the same. So it gives the customer an illusion of the same pricing when in reality, the benefits have actually gotten more expensive. Regardless, BSNL remains the most affordable choice in the Indian telecom industry right now. The state-run telecom company will also have no other option but to increase prices a little to improve its returns in the near future.
