Sends proposal to Home Ministry
SHILLONG: Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited’s Meghalaya Secondary Switching Areas (SSA) has sent a proposal to the Home Ministry to set up 56 towers at the outposts of Border Security Force (BSF) along the Indo-Bangla border.
BSNL GMTD of Meghalaya SSA Totha Anila Kiran said on Monday the move to set up towers under the Central Armed Police Force plan would provide mobile coverage to those living along the border, besides helping BSF personnel.
Kiran said the detailed project report was submitted to the Ministry and BSNL is awaiting approval. The estimated cost of the project is around Rs 70 crore.
Most of the bordering villages in the State do not have mobile connectivity.
BSNL has also provided 44 digital satellite phone terminals to the State Government out of the 75 demanded and these can be used in times of emergencies when mobile network is weak.
According to Kiran, the digital satellite phone terminals are being temporarily set up at the office buildings of the respective Deputy Commissioners.
The price of a digital satellite phone terminal is around Rs 1.5 lakh and the satellite hubs are located in Bengaluru and Secunderabad. During emergency, calls will be made from the State to the hub centres.
Meanwhile, Kiran, who has recently taken charge of the BSNL Meghalaya area, asserted that her focus was to better services as “subscribers are demanding better services, proper applications and prompt action”.
“Our counterparts work merely for profit and we work to serve people and contribute to nation building,” she added.
It may be mentioned cellular connectivity in the border areas of the State needs immediate attention of the concerned authorities.
