Union Minister Scindia Announces Inauguration of Over 97,500 Mobile 4G Towers Worth ₹37,000 Crore
The inauguration will be carried out by the Prime Minister tomorrow, September 27, at Jharsuguda, Odisha
Aligned with the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat and technological self-reliance, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) today announced the launch of its fully indigenous 4G technology network.
Union Minister for Communications & Development of North Eastern Region, Jyotiraditya M. Scindia, addressed a press conference to announce the inauguration of more than 97,500 Mobile 4G Towers at a cost of ₹37,000 crore. The inauguration will be carried out by the Prime Minister tomorrow, September 27, at Jharsuguda, Odisha.
Swadeshi 4G – Upgradable to 5G
The Minister highlighted that over 92,600 sites installed by BSNL are based on indigenous 4G technology, developed through a fully homegrown stack that is upgradable to 5G.
- Radio Access Network (RAN): Developed by Tejas Networks
- Core Network: Developed by C-DOT
- System Integration: By TCS
Scindia remarked: “BSNL’s Swadeshi 4G launch, which is built on C-DOT core and Tejas RAN, marks a historic step towards Viksit Bharat. It is a reaffirmation of India’s capability to design, develop, and deploy advanced telecom networks indigenously.”
Expanding Connectivity Nationwide
In addition to BSNL’s rollout, over 4,700 mobile towers have been installed by RJIL (Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd) and BAL (Bharti Airtel Ltd). Furthermore, 14,180 mobile towers under the Digital Bharat Nidhi (DBN)-funded saturation project will connect 26,700 previously unserved villages, including remote, border, and left-wing extremism-affected areas.
These towers will provide connectivity to over 2 million new subscribers, enabling access to:
- e-Governance services
- Digital payments
- Online education
- Telemedicine
- Citizen-centric applications at the click of a button
India Among the Top 5 Nations in Telecom Self-Reliance
The Minister underlined that with this achievement, India becomes the 5th country in the world to develop and deploy a fully indigenous telecom stack. Unlike other countries that took decades, Indian scientists and engineers accomplished this milestone in just three years.
Dr. Neeraj Mittal, Secretary, Department of Telecommunications, added that the indigenous 4G stack positions India as a product-offering country in a dynamically evolving global telecom industry.
Marking BSNL’s Silver Jubilee Year, A. Robert J Ravi, CMD, BSNL, stated: “The Silver Jubilee of BSNL gives us the honor of leading India into the indigenous 4G era, reinforcing our commitment to seamless connectivity and digital empowerment.”
