The government announced a Rs 1.67 lakh crore relief package for the state-run telecom operator BSNL (Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited). Looking at that, Mahendra Nahata, MD, HFCL, said that it would make BSNL a strong business enterprise. Nahata also talked about the great response that the telcos gave to the 5G spectrum auction of 2022. The spending from the telcos for 5G airwaves was more than what the analysts had expected. “The overwhelming response to the 5G spectrum auction shows the industry’s confidence in the telecom sector, its continued growth and the government’s policies. Our honourable Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi Ji has given a transparent government to our country. His policies of transparency and ease-of-doing business are being aptly followed by the Ministry of Communications under the able and dynamic leadership of Honourable Minister Shri Ashwini Vaishnav Ji,” Nahata said.
BSNL’s Relief Package to Change Things
BSNL’s relief package will be focusing on several things right from helping the state-run telco with 4G spectrum, 4G capex, restructuring debt on the books and more. BSNL will also be provided with several USOF projects, which will help the telco in growing its presence in the country at a faster rate in rural areas. It will also keep the BSNL employee union happy for the coming years. BSNL is on track to launch homegrown 4G networks soon. “The relief package of Rs. 1.64 lakh crore for BSNL announced by the Honourable Minister of Communications will revive BSNL to become a strong business enterprise. A strong BSNL is vital for the country for its strategic reasons and crucial for the growth of the entire telecom sector of India. The current management of BSNL has a focussed approach to its revival. The announced relief package will strengthen the hands of BSNL management to transform it into a world-class telecom service provider that effectively competes with its peers,” added Nahata. 5G will enable a lot of things. A few of those would be Industry 4.0 use cases, smart cities, and more. The power of 5G networks is something that will impact the whole economy in the coming years. It will help with adding new jobs and also push India towards the USD 5 trillion economy goal fast. “5G will allow enterprises to embark on the Industry 4.0 journey, and it will help accelerate digital transformation across industries spanning manufacturing, retail, utilities, smart cities and more. The 5G revolution would contribute significantly in achieving our honourable PM’s vision of India becoming a USD 5 trillion economy, and it will aid in bridging the digital divide — thus making various services like healthcare, education, financial services, e-commerce & entertainment accessible to the bottom of the pyramid,” Nahata said.
