The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) recently conducted a 5G spectrum auction in India, with Jio bidding for 24,740 MHz at Rs 88,078 crore, followed by Airtel at Rs 43,084 crore for 19,867.8 MHz. Vodafone Idea won its 17 3300 MHz intermediate frequency 5G spectrum in 1 priority circle and 26GHz millimetre wave 5G spectrum in its 16 circles. The telcos are expected to start deploying 5G networks nationwide in October this year. IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said state-run Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) will start deploying 5G connectivity in India from 2023.

The minister told ET Telecom that the Centre for the Development of Telematics (C-DoT) had developed the non-standalone (NSA) core network, which will be ready by August this year, with subsequent tests expected to end in December this year. “By next year, India’s 5G stack will be ready for deployment, including at BSNL,” the minister told the publication, adding that equipment at nearly 100,000 sites could be ready by deployment.

Separately, the telco has approached Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) for a price point to upgrade its network to 5G. The development follows a contract worth Rs 550 crore, with BSNL awarding TCS to build 6,000 sites and deploy a commercial 4G network at 1.20 lakh sites nationwide.

It’s worth noting that this isn’t the first report to point to BSNL’s rollout of 5G networks starting in 2023. In May, it was reported that BSNL was rolling out 5G on the 4G core, for which the company would use 5G NSA (non-standalone) technology. NSA technology uses existing network infrastructure to deploy 5G connectivity, while standalone (SA) technology uses the latest network infrastructure. While SA provides faster, more reliable connections, NSA is easy to deploy and costs significantly less.

A separate report by the publication said the state-owned telco will launch its 4G service nationwide in 2023. The company is working closely with TCS. The full rollout is expected to take about 24 months.