BSNL Will Deploy 1.2 Lakh 4G Towers Across India For 4G Roll Out; Rs 650 Crore Contract Confirmed With TCS For 6000 4G Sites

BSNL is now planning to install as many as 1.12 lakh towers throughout the country. The decision has come ahead of the much awaited 4G network rollout of the state-owned telecom provider.

The Telecom Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has confirmed this news in the Lok Sabha as well.

BSNL’s 4G Push: How It’s Working?

BSNL is expected to launch its 4G commercial services in Q2 of fiscal 2022-23 after a purchase order (PO) for network equipment procurement is placed by April.

Vaishnaw, during the question hour, stated, “I am happy to inform you that the 4G telecom network is ready for roll out soon and it is developed in India by Indian engineers and scientists. Our development of 4G network is being appreciated worldwide and it has a core network, radio network with full telecom equipment.”

He also stated that BSNL is currently ordering 6000 towers as of now, and an additional 6000 towers will follow. This means that more than 1 lakh towers will be installed. All these towers will reportedly be for the 4G network. 

Additionally, 5G report development is also in the works “in parallel and will be ready in a few months.”

However, the internet connection inside trains will only be available after the roll out of 5G networks. Apparently, communications get disrupted with 4G technology in trains that run 100 km per hour.

An official at the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DoT) recently said that they were doing their proof of concept (PoC) alongside 5G. 

As far as the 5G NSA is concerned, he shared that they will launch the BSNL network by August 2022. The plan is that once BSNL has established its 4G presence, it can utilise the 4G core and go with 5G non-standalone architecture (NSA) networks to deliver a homegrown 5G as well.

BSNL Gives Rs 550 Crore Contract To TCS 

Related to this, we have received reports that BSNL has given TCS a Rs 600 crore contract to install around 600 4G sites.

TCS has been the primary IT solutions provider for BSNL’s 4G deployment across India. 

Trials with TCS has been completed, and BSNL has already placed an order for 40-watt radios with them.

We will keep you updated, as more details come in.