Unproven 4G gear to increase cost, delay rollout: BSNL tells DoT

Kolkata: The government’s Atmanirbhar Bharat push faces a serious challenge from one of its own. State-run telco, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) has told the telecom department that forcing it to buy globally unproven 4G network gear from local vendors could delay its plans to roll out the high-speed data services by at least another 18 months, increase costs, throw up network quality issues and further reduce its survival chances in a fiercely competitive sector.

In a recent meeting, BSNL’s leadership has also told the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) it must not be mandated in isolation to buy core 4G network gear from local vendors, insisting that any such central directive must also automatically apply to the Big 3 private telcos – Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea (Vi) – to ensure a level-playing field.