Govt lines up Rs 47,000 cr capex to boost BSNL network, says DoT

New Delhi: The government is ready with another Rs 47,000 crore capex plan to boost BSNL’s network, the Department of Telecom said on social media platform X on Thursday.

BSNL has spent Rs 25,000 crore in the last year for installing 1 lakh towers for 4G mobile services. “We have another close to Rs 47,000 crore capex plan in place for BSNL. Meanwhile, BSNL has done its highest-ever capex of Rs 25,000 crore during last year,” the DoT said, quoting Union Telecom Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia.

IT firm TCS and a C-DoT-led consortium had bagged the majority of the Rs 25,000 crore project for the supply of telecom gear to BSNL. Scindia has asked state-run telecom firm BSNL to add customers and grow its mobile service business by 50 per cent over the next year.

During a review meeting with BSNL’s circle and business unit heads last month, Scindia asked each unit to increase enterprise business by 25-30 per cent and fixed line business by a minimum of 15-20 per cent.

The minister has asked BSNL to increase its Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) -- a key metric for a telecom company’s growth -- by improving customer satisfaction and adding more subscribers. BSNL’s APRU varies from circle to circle, ranging from around Rs 40 to over Rs 175 in others.