Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) is now expected to take more time for launching 4G networks. The telco’s 4G trials have been extended now. The trials were supposed to finish by October 31, 2021. But that hasn’t happened because Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) hasn’t complied with all the norms of the Expression of Interest (EoI). BSNL wants TCS to comply with the EoI norms and use 40W radios. TCS has majorly used 20W radios for the sites which would increase the power requirement for running 4G sites.
BSNL 4G Trials Now Expected to Finish by December 31, 2021
According to a Financial Express report, the expected time from for BSNL to complete the 4G trials is now extended to December 31, 2021. If the state-run telco then takes almost 10 months from there to launch 4G services, it would mean that BSNL’s 4G networks might only become a reality by the end of 2022. But that too depends on the condition that there are no more delays. The telco has extended the proof of concept (PoC) timeline till December 31, 2021. Further, there’s also problems for the telco in upgrading the 2G and 3G sites to 4G in the south and west zones at a cost of Rs 567.35 crore. For the unaware, its proposal to upgrade the said sites were denied. All this additional time that BSNL is taking to roll out 4G services is eating away its chances of actually being able to make an impact in the market. The other operators would have enhanced the quality of their 4G services by a long margin until then. Further, even 5G might arrive in end by the end of 2022 or early 2023. BSNL requires 4G roll out very desperately and the delays must be very painful for the company. If there are any more delays, BSNL’s 4G won’t make any difference at all.
