In March, the government decided to merge Bharat Broadband Nigam Limited (BBNL) with Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), to form a single state-owned telecom entity.
What does this mean for rural connectivity?
the announcement
At a recent event organized by the All India Graduate Engineers and Telecom Officers Association (AIGETOA), BSNL Chairman and Managing Director PK Purwar remarked that the government is giving the telecom firm a chance to turn things around.
On that occasion, he clarified that the Government has decided that bbnl And BSNL will be integrated. This means that all India work of BBNL will be transferred to BSNL.
BSNL already has an optical fiber cable (OFC) network of over 6.8 lakh kms. With the planned merger, BSNL will get access to 5.67 million km of optical fiber, which has been deployed in 1.85 million gram panchayats across the country with the help of Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF).
In February 2012, the Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) BBNL was set up to lay an optical fiber network in 2.5 lakh gram panchayats across the country, using USOF and to provide non-discriminatory access to all telecom carriers .
Telecom operators will have to pay an 8% license fee on their income from the sale of telecom services, which includes a 5% fee for USOF.
State governments do not levy Right of Way (RoW) charges for laying OFCs by BBNL, which saves money as compared to the rates paid to telecom providers.
Rs 45,000 crore in the budget
However, BBNL employees in the department are protesting against the proposed merger reportedly due to BSNL’s prior non-performance Bharatnet Project and pending vendor dues despite payment of SPV to state-run telecom business.
The officials agreed that private telecom operators contribute to the USOF and consolidating the assets of BBNL under one player would be against the objective of the SPV and the goal of providing non-discriminatory access to rural broadband networks to all participants.
Some industry insiders had earlier told The Financial Express that when merged with BSNL’s wider market presence across the country, the merger could provide last-mile connectivity to rural areas.
However, Purwar, in his remarks at the conference, asked the employees to put their best foot forward for the growth of the company, noting that the political leadership has given a free hand to the turnaround and no capex for at least the next two years. There will be no crisis. , He also said that a provision of about Rs 45,000 crore has been made for BSNL Budget,
He added that the company is nearing the end of its 4G trial and may soon approach the board to place a small order, so that supplies can begin in May and June, and the network testing and experience on the ground can be completed.
read all breaking news , today’s fresh news And IPL 2022 Live Updates Here.