British telecom major, and now a large telco in India as well, Vodafone is going to invest a large sum of amount in West Bengal. Despite talks of recent merger with Idea Cellular and Reliance Jio, the Indian arm has decided to invest some amount in the eastern part of India.
Vodafone India has decided to invest Rs 3,000 crore over the next three years in capacity augmentation and new business initiatives in West Bengal. A Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) was signed between Vodafone India and the Government of West Bengal on Monday, 23rd January at the Global Business Summit 2017.
The investment made over three years will focus on improving the ‘Supernet’ experience in the state and generating more employment opportunities. Vodafone already has a very strong hold in the state and wants to acquire more customers there by improving the infrastructure.
“At Vodafone, we are enthused with government’s vision of creating Bengal a business hub and keen to be a partner in its delivery. We remain deeply invested in and committed to West Bengal and are pleased to announce our investment plans in the state,” said Arvinder Singh Sachdev, Business Head – Kolkata and West Bengal Circle at Vodafone.
The company has also invested heavily in the past, around Rs 8,300 crore in West Bengal to improve the network capacity and provide better customer service to the users in the state.
Competitor Airtel has already invested around Rs 13,000 crore in West Bengal and has plans to invest more in the state for the next three to five years. The newest investment talks have been going around of about Rs 3,500 crore by Airtel, but the MoU is still being created.
Vodafone India has upwards of 2 crore customers in the state, that make it one of the most important states in India. The company has also recently launched ‘SuperNet 4G’ in the state and the internet service will be improved and expanded over the time.
All the major telcos are looking for investments in states that can give them maximum returns, and that have the most potential. Airtel has quite a widespread network and Vodafone faces a strong competition from it. Either way, it’s a win-win for customers who get the best out of this fierce competition.
