BSNL 4G to come in 2 weeks, 5G by year-end: Ashwini Vaishnaw
The minister, while speaking at the launch of the 200,000th 5G site in Uttarakhand, stated that BSNL will be installing 200 4G sites per day all over the country.
NEW DELHI: State-owned telecom service provider Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) is set to start its 4G services within next two weeks, and will upgrade to 5G network by the end of this year, telecom minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced on Wednesday.
The minister, while speaking at the launch of the 200,000th 5G site in Uttarakhand, stated that BSNL will be installing 200 4G sites per day all over the country. “BSNL has completed the installation of 200 sites, and within two weeks, they will go live. After testing them for three months, the telco will start installing about 200 sites,” Vaishnaw said.
He added that after deploying 4G networks, BSNL will quickly upgrade to 5G by the end of the year. “BSNL’s 4G stack is upgradeable, meaning that with just a few software updates, the network will be updated to 5G. I believe that by November or December, BSNL will start deploying the 5G network all over the country,” said the minister.
While BSNL’s competitors, Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel, are launching their 5G networks, BSNL is still offering 3G or 2G services. The state-owned company’s 4G rollout has faced delays because of the government’s decision to implement its indigenous technology for the network.
Recently, the company has placed an order of Rs 15,000 crore with Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) for purchase of 4G equipment. Its CMD PK Purwar said BSNL will cover entire India with its 4G network by the end of 2023. The company will start deploying 4G networks in northern India first and simultaneously it will cover the entire country.
Vaishnaw also mentioned that the US has shown interest in deploying India’s indigenously developed 4G and 5G technology. According to the minister, India is soon going to pilot the deployment of its indigenously developed 5G or 4G stack in the US. “Today, I received a call from a DoT official who informed me about the US interest in our 4G and 5G stack. I instructed the team to expedite the matter and conduct it on a pilot basis,” said the minister.
‘US shown interest in India’s 4G, 5G tech’
Telecom minister said that the US has shown interest in deploying India’s indigenously developed 4G and 5G technology. According to the minister, India is soon going to pilot the deployment of the country’s indigenously developed 5G or 4G stack in the US
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