Cabinet approves revival package for BSNL amounting to Rs 89,047 crore

The Union Cabinet has approved a revival package of Rs 89,047 crore for BSNL, Zee Business reported on Wednesday (June 7), citing sources. This is the third time in a row that the Cabinet has approved a hefty amount for the revival of the state-run telecom carrier. BSNL stands for Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited.

The BSNL revival measure also includes its merger with Bharat Broadband Network Limited (BBNL) for better infrastructure utilisation, underscoring the government’s policy of retaining one state-run business in strategic sectors.

Previously, in July 2022, the Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved the revival package of BSNL, amounting to Rs 1.64 lakh crore. The Cabinet mentioned in its release back then that revival measures would focus on infusing fresh capital for upgrading BSNL services, allocating spectrum, de-stressing its balance sheet, and augmenting its fibre network by merging Bharat Broadband Nigam Limited (BBNL) with BSNL.

After the Cabinet cleared the amount in July 2022, it also proposed a four-year turnaround plan for the telecom company that included both a cash component and a non-cash component. The cash proponent is supposed to be used for spectrum allocation, capital expenditure, and viability gap funding, the then minister for telecom, Ashwini Vaishnaw, said.

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BSNL के रिवाइवल के लिए तीसरे पैकेज को मंजूरी: सूत्र#RevivalPackage #BSNL pic.twitter.com/6MuwXR8t1r

— Zee Business (@ZeeBusiness) June 7, 2023

While announcing the revival package for the company, the Cabinet stressed the fact that with these measures, BSNL would be able to improve the quality of existing services, roll out 4G services, and become financially viable. "It is expected that with the implementation of this revival plan, BSNL will turn around and earn profit in FY 2026–27," Cabinet stated in the release.

As per the latest release by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, as of February 2023, the private telecom service providers held a 90.21 percent market share of the wireless subscribers, whereas BSNL and MTNL, the two PSU access service providers, had a market share of only 9.79 per cent.

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