BSNL has been in the news lately due to tariff increases by private telecom operators like Jio, Airtel, and Vi in July. Many telecom subscribers have been switching to BSNL because of its affordable recharge plans. The state-owned telecom company has also been accelerating its 4G rollout across the country. The government is working to restore BSNL's former prominence and make it relevant again. The company aims to provide improved connectivity and plans to install 100,000 mobile towers for 4G coverage across the country, with the support of a government fund of Rs 6,000 crore.
Recently, Union Telecom Minister Joytiraditya Scindia highlighted BSNL’s plans for success at the Public Affairs Forum of India. He mentioned that while typically there are two major players in the telecom industry, India currently has four: Jio, Airtel, Vi, and BSNL. He emphasised the government's commitment to ensuring BSNL's success.
BSNL 4G roll out
He stated that it is a priority to roll out 100,000 4G sites by the middle of June next year in order to provide maximum bandwidth to BSNL's 8 percent market share of customers. He also noted that while not everyone in India needs 4G due to the prevalence of 2G and 3G users, there is a growing need to transition to 4G, as 4G coverage already extends to about 98 percent of the districts in India.
BSNL customer service
He also mentioned that after rolling out the 4G network, the focus will shift to customer attraction. He stated that there has been a significant number of customers switching to BSNL from other providers after the recent tariff hikes, and his key challenge will be to retain these customers after the network is rolled out. To address this, the company is developing a customer relationship management (CRM) model within BSNL to engage customers in real-time and ensure that their issues are resolved promptly.
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