Guwahati, India (BBN)– Bharat Sachar Nigam Limited  (BSNL), Indian state-owned telecommunications company, will soon install mobile tower along Indo-Bangladesh, Indo-Bhutan and Myanmar borders to improve the mobile connectivity along the international border.
The Union Ministry of Home Affairs has done away with the earlier restriction on mobile towers within 10 km radius of international border, reports The Economic Times.
“Towers will come up along the border outposts (BOP). There is BOP at the distance of 40 km and we will have towers on 40 km each. We will install close to 450 towers,” said Rajiv Yadav, chief general manager (CGM) of the BSNL Assam telecom circle, on Tuesday.
“Connectivity along the border areas will witness huge change once this project is complete,” Yadav added.
“Already the process of tendering has started. The project is expected to be completed by 2017.”
Assam government had sought installation of close to 2,000 mobile towers to ramp up connectivity in the hills districts and border areas which will assist in countering the insurgents as these areas often work as major hideouts and transit route for the insurgents.
“Soon the people staying along the international border areas will get the mobile connectivity. This project will improve the connectivity of the border areas,” Yadav said.
BSNL will take 10 gigabytes of bandwidth from PowerGrid Corporation of the India Ltd.
PowerGrid has extensive network in Northeast India and BSNL will use this network to link the state capitals and other important towns of the Northeast India.
“We will pay Rs 50 crore to PowerGrid annually for the bandwidth. At present, Northeast India connectivity gets affected if there is cable cut. These measures will secure the connectivity of the region,” the CGM said.
BBN/ANS