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Core network developed by Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DoT) will be used by BSNL to launch its 4G Services

A new paradigm opens up for India’s indigenous telecom equipment industry with the BSNL 4G services expected to be launched soon.

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Voice&Data Bureau
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4G Services

A new paradigm opens up for India’s indigenous telecom equipment industry with the BSNL 4G services expected to be launched soon

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By V&D Team

Exactly one year after the Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) issued an e-tender for planning, testing, deployment, and maintenance of its long-delayed 4G network, it seems a historic moment is in the making soon.

The final Proof of Concept (POC) of 4G services being conducted at Chandigarh and Ambala is nearing successful completion. The BSNL 4G network will use core technology developed by C-DoT and other components of the 4G solution through a consortium led by TCS.

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“The 4G core developed by us is a historical moment for India in its quest for Atmanirbhar and local technology. This is in line with the vision of the Hon. Prime Minister of our country,” Dr. Rajkumar Upadhyay, Executive Director and Board Chairman of C-DoT told V&D.

The biggest innovation in the C-DoT platform is its fully (100%) virtualized core. This is unlike any other 4G platform in the world and makes it possible for BSNL to run 4G services on any off-the-shelf hardware or server. Dependency on specific vendors and their hardware will be reduced to zero. Failure of hardware -- like network cards -- will not be a bottleneck. Dependency and lock-in will be minimized.

4G core network platforms have been dominated by a handful of global players so far — including Chinese equipment makers ZTE and Huawei.

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Security is another feature that the C-DoT platform ensures. There is no fear of malware or hidden software threats inside the network. C-DoT’s technology is a game-changer in this.

C-DoT’s 4G technology is an end-to-end carrier-grade solution that operates on a converged core -- supporting mobile, landline, WiFi FTTH, and other access technologies.

Once BSNL completes the POC it is expected to launch 4G commercially. It will be ready to deploy C-DoT’s 5G platform thereafter. This will be a non-standalone (NSA) version of 5G. In the 18 – 24 months it will be upgraded to a Stand Alone (SA) version.

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BSNL is set to launch its 4G services. It leverages fully indigenous technology for the 4G core and stands to benefit from not being dependent on any hardware vendor. A game changer for the country.

NSA Vs SA

As cellular networks migrate from 4G / LTE to 5G standards, the 3GPP standards body had laid out two deployment modes: Non-Standalone Architecture (NSA) and Standalone Architecture (SA).

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NSA architecture integrates and leverages existing infrastructure in order to protect existing investments. Over time the network migrates to SA where the core network infrastructure is fully replaced.

“The next step is to explore the export market as the demand for Indian technology will ramp up,” Dr. Upadhyay said.

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