Forget Reliance Jio, Airtel, check out this Rs 98 MTNL offer

In its bid to compete against rival telecom firms like Reliance Jio and Airtel, to name just two, the government-owned telco Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL) has launched a new prepaid STV of Rs 98, especially to take on the Mukesh Ambani-led company Jio’s Rs 98 plan. MTNL's STV 98 offers unlimited voice calls, 2GB of data and 100 SMS for the validity period of 28 days. The telco is operating in two telecom circles of Mumbai and Delhi, while BSNL is handling the rest of 20 circles. 
 
Notably, Bharti Airtel is already offering similar Rs 99 prepaid plan for select users, providing benefits like the MTNL's Rs 98 plan. MTNL, which has recently revised its entire prepaid tariff portfolio, has no plan under Rs 100, therefore, the all-new STV 98 is expected to fill this gap. 
 
According to TelecomTalk, MTNL offers free calling, SMS will be available in the home network and MTNL Mumbai network, and if subscribers are on roaming they have to pay standard roaming rates. This STV will also be available via online/e-recharge & SMS recharge. Notably, the data benefits is either 2G or 3G as MTNL is yet to launch 4G services in the country.
 
On the other hand, Reliance Jio's Rs 98 prepaid plan aims at basic users, providing  unlimited voice calls to any network in the country, 300 SMS and 2GB of 4G data. On Jio’s network, the voice calls are valid across the country (all 22 telecom circles) and the data benefit is 4G, giving better speeds than a 3G network. This way, Jio network is far ahead of the MTNL services. 
 
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MTNL is reportedly a loss-making government entity as it is currently surrounded by an enormous amount of debt. The government is therefore yet to provide MTNL necessary spectrum to launch its 4G services, the report added.