Date:12/06/2004 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2004/06/12/stories/2004061206250300.htm

Tamil Nadu - Madurai

BSNL plans 2.85 lakh new mobile connections

By Our Staff Reporter

MADURAI, JUNE 11. The Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) will add 2.85 lakh new mobile connections in the Tamil Nadu Telecom Circle in a month, the Chief General Manager, K. Sridhara, said.

Presiding over a function organised by the BSNL to present the Sanchar Seva Padak and Bharat Sanchar Sarathy Awards for 2004 here yesterday, he said the mobile services launched in full swing in March last year with a total of 3.35 lakh connections, which were meant to cater to the public demand for at least two years, were exhausted in just three months.

He said Government procedures delayed increasing the capacity of mobile services, though there was a great demand for BSNL mobile connections.

In the next phase of expansion, the line capacity would be enhanced by nine lakh new connections.

The work would start by November and it would be commissioned before the end of March next year.

More base transreceiver stations would be erected in two phases to improve the coverage in the Madurai telecom district, covering the revenue districts of Madurai, Theni and Dindigul.

Stating that cellphone service was more in demand among the public, Mr. Sridhara urged the staff to make BSNL mobile service more popular and ensure that it became the most sought after service provider.

The BSNL would also introduce the Direct Internet Access System soon. Business houses could make use of the Managed Leased Line Network, which provided the facility of changing the bandwidth according to their demand.

Referring to the cheaper tariff offered by private telecom players, Mr. Sridhara said the BSNL could not follow suit because of its "social commitment" of providing telephone connections in remote rural areas, whereas the private players were concentrating only on main cities.

Giving away the awards, the Vice-Chancellor of Madurai Kamaraj University, P.K. Ponnuswamy, urged the BSNL to concentrate on rural telephony, which was a challenging task. "Though there is a competition in providing value-added services, the failure to provide basic telephone connections in rural areas at cheaper rates will defeat the purpose," he said. He suggested that the BSNL authorities improve the infrastructure, offer new service packages, enhance customer relationship and prepare the organisation to face the changing market situation.

The Madurai BSNL General Manager, K. Subbiah, traced the development and achievements of the Madurai telecom district over the years. The General Manager (Development), M.K. Sudarsan, was present.