BSNL seeks to raise Rs 40,000 crore to deploy indigenously-developed 4G sites !

For a long-time now, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has been trying to proceed with its 4G roll out operations in India. But one after another, problems and hurdles keep arising for the state-run telecom operator. BSNL has been in a grave situation for the last few years and is still running because of the grace of the government’s revival package. Now, State-run Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) is seeking a sovereign guarantee from the Centre to raise around Rs 40,000 crore to repay debt and meet its capital expenditure (capex) for the deployment of ‘made in India’ next generation networks. Following a slew of controversies related to its tender for 4G expansion, the public sector telco has now started to deploy homegrown equipment as part of a pilot programme, in a bid to commercially launch 4G services. Meanwhile , The government-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd’s (BSNL) voluntary retirement scheme (VRS) is moving towards a great success. Reducing manpower is good for BSNL as it will reduce financial burden on it. However, if it is not handled properly, it may have negative impact on it in the long term.