State-owned Indian telco Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) is reportedly preparing to request a 50% increase in funding for the construction of the alternative communications network for the country’s armed forces, India’s Economic Times reports. With the government having approved investment of INR91.75 billion (USD2 billion) for the rollout of a fibre-optic network in December 2009, it is understood that BSNL will seek a further INR53.45 billion; no explanation for the requested budget increase have been forthcoming from the telco.
According to TeleGeography’s GlobalComms Database, the construction of the alternative fibre network for the armed forces was a critical part of paving the way for the long-delayed auction of 3G spectrum, which was finally concluded in May 2010. Having previously utilised a portion of the 3G frequencies, a deal with the government saw the armed forces vacate the frequencies at the end of August 2010, allowing for the allocation of spectrum to those cellcos that won 3G concessions three months earlier.