BSNL 4G services coming soon, starting with a roll out in Kerala and Odisha

After a long wait, the state-owned telecom operator, BSNL will finally enter the 4G arena. According to PTI, the company will launch its 4G services in Kerala next month followed by Odisha, a company official told PTI.

“We are going to start 4G from Kerala. That will be our first circle on 4G LTE. We will initially focus on those areas where 3G coverage is low,” BSNL Chairman and Managing Director Anupam Shrivastava told PTI. “This will be followed by Odisha, a revenue positive circle for BSNL,” he further added.

The company expects that the 5MHz it currently has in the 2100MHz band will be sufficient to roll out its 4G services initially. In a previous report, Shrivastava had told PTI that the company is looking for spectrum in the 2100MHz band in all circles except Rajasthan. BSNL is said to be looking for spectrum in the band 800MHz for Rajasthan circle.

With over 10 crore mobile users across the country excluding Mumbai and Delhi circles, the company expects to roll out 10,000 4G mobile towers by March next year, PTI cited. BSNL has also shared its plans for a separate brand identity for 4G services that is expected to be announced at the time of rollout.

While major telecom providers like Airtel and Vodafone are already in an offers war with new entrant Jio with aggressive 4G schemes, BSNL is now looking to jump into the thick of things. Reliance Jio recently announced a couple of new Happy New Year 2018 plans bringing lucrative benefits for its prepaid users.

Further, the telecom operator introduced a new cashback offer succeeding the Triple cashback offer that concluded on December 25. Jio is offering a cash back up to Rs 3300 for its prepaid users who recharge it with Rs 399 or above. The offer that went live today will continue until January 15, 2018.