After a long wait, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) is getting ready to offer its 4G services in the West Bengal region, most likely by end of this year.
Two telecom circles of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) in West Bengal, are expected to get 4G spectrum shortly, have been "actively" creating requisite infrastructure to roll out high-speed data services in the next 2-3 months, officials said.
Dismissing rumours about the state-owned operator's closure, heads of both Calcutta Telephones that looks after the Kolkata circle and the West Bengal telecom circle said deployment of 4G equipment is progressing at a rapid pace.
"We have started deploying 4G equipment actively. Due to technical reasons, we cannot deploy equipment on a mass scale in large cities unless the spectrum is ready with us,” Calcutta Telephones CGM Biswajit Paul told PTI.
"We have launched 4G in Sikkim and will be able to roll out the same across West Bengal in the next two months after the allocation of 4G spectrum by the government," Ramakant Sharma, CGM - West Bengal circle, BSNL said.
Paul maintained that the testing had been carried out outside the city and the installation of 4G equipment would be "laid aggressively after the allotment of the spectrum".
Officials said the state-owned operator will offer seamless switchover from 3G to 4G without affecting services.
BSNL's Bengal circle will be covered by 2,000 base transceiver stations (BTS) under 4G, of which 1,200 BTS is ready, Sharma said, adding that work was under way to erect the remaining stations.
The number of mobile connections in this circle during the first six months of the current fiscal grew by 189 percent, he said.
BSNL officials are bullish on subscriber growth after Reliance Jio's announcement to levy 6 paisa per minute for voice calls made to its rival mobile phone networks, Sharma added.
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