India has earmarked a total of INR890 billion ($10.8 billion) for the allotment of 4G and 5G spectrum for BSNL
Indian state-run operator Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has inked a strategic partnership with engineering services company L&T Technology Services (LTTS) with the aim of to accelerate adoption of private 5G networks by enterprises.
Under the terms of the deal, BSNL and LTTS plan to collaborate to jointly bring to market private 5G connectivity solutions to accelerate digital transformation for enterprises.
The deal stipulates that BSNL will be in charge of the provision of spectrum, while LTTS will deploy the necessary equipment, applications, servers, technology and software for the integration of devices within the customer’s ecosystem. LTTS will also be in charge of planning potential use cases for customers.
BSNL has already signed up systems integrator Amantya Technologies and IT solutions provider Echelon Edge to deploy private 5G networks for enterprises across the Indian market.
The government of India has recently earmarked a total of INR890 billion ($10.8 billion) for the allotment of spectrum for state-run operator BSNL to launch nationwide 4G and 5G services. Through this move, the state-owned telco will obtain spectrum in the 700 MHz, 2.5 GHz, 3.3 GHz and 26 GHz bands. With this new spectrum, BSNL will be in a position to provide pan-India 4G and 5G service, provide 4G coverage in rural regions under various connectivity projects, provide Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) service and offer services or spectrum for private networks.
According to recent reports, BSNL aims to initially provide 4G services in high-revenue telecom circles in India via the 2.1 GHz spectrum band. According to previous reports, BSNL expects to cover all telecom circles in India with its 4G services by the end of its upcoming financial year, which ends in March 2024.
Also, the country’s Minister of Railways, Communications and Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw said that BSNL could launch 5G technology in March 2024. Vaishnaw clarified that initially, BSNL’s 5G network will be based on the Non-Standalone (NSA) architecture.
BSNL is likely to launch 5G services in 600 MHz, 3.3 GHz and 26 GHz bands, according to previous reports. These spectrum bands have been reserved by the Department of Telecommunication and after the 4G launch, all sites will be upgraded to 5G.
In May, India’s Department of Telecommunication (DoT) has reportedly decided that it will not directly allocate 5G spectrum to enterprises for the deployment of private 5G networks, local newspaper The Economic Times reported.
The report said that the DoT is now against direct allocation of frequencies because it believes it is not feasible under the current legal framework. In March, India’s Attorney General R Venkataramani had advised the DoT to prioritize auctions for 5G spectrum.
The DoT will soon inform the Cabinet and the country’s Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) about its final decision. This new decision goes against DoT’s initial guidelines on private networks that were released in 2022. These guidelines stipulated that firms looking to set up their own private networks could lease 5G spectrum from telecom operators or get it directly from the DoT — as opposed to such spectrum being auctioned.
