Right now Vodafone Idea has received the relief it needed after India’s federal cabinet approved a relief package for the cash-strapped sector, but BSNL is still standing where it was a few months back.
Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), the state-owned company, is the only telecom operator that stands in a confused state right now.In recent times the operator has not received any support from the central government.
The 4G rollout scenario of BSNL is not clear as there is no clarity on what should happen next.
BSNL has a network presence all over India with a strong backbone of landline infrastructure. The telco has started upgrading the 3G network to 4G but due to ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ drive of the government the telco has been burdened it is facing lot of hurdles.
There’s no doubt that it is a beneficial initiative [‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’] for the country by the Modi government, but it is also taking its toll on BSNL.
The issue is not simple. BSNL does not have any time left. By investing more in its networks as its cash flow situation is going to get a major boost on the back of the relief measures announced by the government, VI (Vodafone Idea) will be gearing up to capture larger market share.
But What will BSNL do?
The government needs to give BSNL the option to upgrade to 4G in select regions using Nokia and Ericsson. No doubt both are not Indian companies but they are not Chinese either. This will help in expediting the 4G rollout plans of the telco.
More importantly, what can it really do if not roll out 4G networks. Maybe the cost of the reliable India mission will have to be paid by the state-run telecom operator, the way it is already doing so.