BSNL envisaged as a vehicle to achieve the objective of indigenous (Swadeshi) 4G/5G telecom stack under Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan of central government. In line with the initiative, BSNL is deploying India 4G/5G stack. BSNL floated the Expression of Interest (EOI) on 1 January, 2021 for the Proof of Concept (PoC). BSNL has floated the tender in October 2022 for its requirement of 1 lakh 4G sites. BSNL is deploying 4G Equipment’s under Phase IX.2 4G project with the help of indigenous companies such as TCS as an integrator, Tejas as a RAN (Radio Access Network) provider & C-DOT as a CORE Provider. The equipment being procured through Phase IX.2 project is also 5G upgradable.
BSNL is also executing 4G saturation Project entrusted by the Centre to provide 4G mobile services by using 4G Atma-Nirbhar Bharat technology in remote and difficult terrains of India for connecting 24,600 uncovered villages in rural and hilly areas to bridge the digital divide.
BSNL, Kolkata telecom district is proudly launching its 1st indigenous 4G site in Ballygunge Telephone Exchange on Wednesday. Subsequently, the whole of Kolkata and the rest of Bengal will be covered with 4G network in a phased manner.