- BSNL, the government-run telco, is said to launch 5G next year.
- The telco will be launching 5G over the 4G core, thereby leveraging 5G NSA.
- The government is yet to allocate the 5G spectrum to the telcos in the country.
Almost every telecom company has started gearing up to bring about 5G services in India. If things go as planned, as can expect the leading private telcos of India (Reliance Jio, Airtel, and Vi) to take the wraps off their commercial 5G services by the end of this year.
The only thing that’s potentially stopping these companies from introducing 5G to the Indian market appears to be the spectrum auction. The government is yet to announce a fixed date on the auctions, so there’s still no fixed date on which we can expect 5G to be a reality for India. Telecom Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had earlier said the 5G auction may take place in June this year. In any case, things are happening real soon when it comes to the private telcos. Well, not so much if we talk about BSNL, the government-run telecom company. As per a new report, BSNL will launch 5G services in 2023.
BSNL 5G services to be unveiled in 2023
According to a new report by PTI, BSNL will unveil its 5G services in India in 2023. For 2022, the company will be focusing on its 4G infrastructure. The state-run telco is reportedly aiming to launch indigenous 4G networks. Matter of fact, it has already developed a native 4G core in partnership with the C-DoT (Centre for Development of Telematics) and TCS (Tata Consultancy Services).
Much like its 4G infrastructure, BSNL is said to go for indigenous 5G infrastructure as well. The company will be launching 5G over the 4G core, which means that it will leverage 5G NSA technology to launch 5G services in India. But, in order for BSNL to be able to do that, it needs a 4G infrastructure in the country, hence the delay.
As per the report, BSNL will first launch its 4G network in places like Pune, Maharashtra, and Kerala, and will soon scale the network. By August 2022, BSNL will start testing 4G networks in four districts of Kerala. By the end of this year, the telco is expected to have a country-wide 4G network, and in 2023, we might get to see BSNL 5G services in India.
