Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNLIndia is planning to introduce commercial 4G services and its 5G network in non-standalone (NSA) mode on August 15, 2022, on Independence Day 2022. Rajkumar Upadhyay, Executive Director and Chairman, Center for Development of Telematics (C-DoT). Information during a recent industry event. He revealed that the state-owned telco is doing a Proof of Concept (PoC) for 4G while simultaneously working on 5G.
Private Indian telecom companies have already launched their 4G network a few years back, but BSNL was stuck as it faced financial challenges in bringing it to market. BSNL’s 4G network is now complete and the company is expected to launch it as soon as the commercial agreement is done. However, we can expect BSNL to deploy its 5G SA connections by the third quarter of 2023.
BSNL has collaborated with IT services and consulting company Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) to conduct field trials at Ambala and Chandigarh in North India. State-run Telecom Consultants India Limited (TCIL) has partnered with C-DOT on other indigenous products like Core Network.
C-DOT, a state-owned research institution, along with premier academic institutions like Indian Institute of Technology is playing a vital role in developing the domestic telecom technology ecosystem. BSNL will use the same Indian 4G technology to launch its services in 2022.
In addition, the government is promoting the use of Indian startups to develop indigenous technologies and use cases. To reduce its dependence on international vendors, India is trying to promote the development of domestic technologies and products as a part of its Atmanirbhar Bharat (Self-reliant India) policy.