BSNL unions urge PM Modi — Mandate indigenous 4G, fill leadership void

Employee unions of state-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited have written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging him to direct all central and state government departments, public sector undertakings and employees who claim mobile reimbursements from public funds to mandatorily use BSNL’s indigenously developed 4G services — a move they say would reinforce India’s telecom sovereignty and advance the Aatmanirbhar Bharat vision.

The Bharatiya Doorsanchar Manch, an umbrella body representing several BSNL unions including AIGETOA, BTEU, BDPS and AIBSNLOBCEWA, argued in its April 6 letter that BSNL is “not merely a telecom service provider but a strategic national asset,” pointing to its critical role in connecting remote, rural and border areas where private operators have limited presence. Mandating government use of BSNL’s swadeshi 4G stack, it said, would strengthen data sovereignty, optimise public spending, and catalyse demand for domestic telecom equipment and innovation.

BSNL’s 4G rollout — built on an indigenous technology stack developed by a TCS-led consortium that includes Tejas Networks and C-DoT — is currently in the midst of deploying one lakh base stations nationwide, with 20,000 more planned. However, the telco faces stiff competition from Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea, all of which already offer commercial 5G services.

In a separate letter to Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, the unions flagged a leadership vacuum at the top. BSNL has been without a permanent Chairman and Managing Director since July 2024, with Robert J Ravi holding additional charge — a tenure extended five times since. The Public Enterprises Selection Board conducted interviews in March 2025 but declined to recommend any of the ten candidates as suitable.

The unions warned that the “prolonged ad-hoc arrangement” was weakening institutional accountability and board-level leadership, urging that the CMD selection be completed urgently, with a reasonably lengthy tenure to enable decisive action on network rollout, HR reform and finances.

CT Bureau