The Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has awarded a Rs 550 crore contract to the Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) to set up 6,000 4G sites.
The 4G sites will be deployed at high-revenue potential locations where the infrastructure is prepared. A pan-India implementation of the plan will follow soon afterwards, Financial Express reports.
“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,” Union Minister of Communications Ashwini Vaishnaw told the Lok Sabha on Wednesday.
He added, “Our development of 4G network is being appreciated worldwide and it has a core network, radio network with full telecom equipment.”
The rollout of BSNL’s 4G services has been delayed by over two years due to various reasons.
The state-run telco is now expected to launch its commercial 4G services and its 5G network in a non-standalone mode by August 2022.
The unavailability of 4G services has resulted in the BSNL losing its market share to private operators in recent years.