Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd is now offering 30 GB of 3G data with a validity of 30 days for Rs 549 rupees under a promotional scheme till the end of the month.
The scheme is intended to coincide with similar freebies announced by new entrant Reliance Jio.
Jio offers 10 GB of extra 4G data if anyone goes for their 499 plan before the end of this month and 5GB for those going for their 303 plan.
Coming a week after BSNL unveiled India’s cheapest daily-quota data plan at Rs 339 per month, the offer further strengthens the company’s position as India’s cheapest high-speed data operator.
That said, BSNL will find it difficult to match the experience that it delivers with those of 4G operators like Jio, Bharti Airtel and Idea Cellular as it is using only 10 MHz of spectrum compared to 40 MHz for Bharti Airtel and 50 MHz for Reliance.
In addition to the 549 plan, it also announced three other limited-time schemes including 14GB at Rs 291, 7 GB at Rs 198 and 4 GB at Rs 156.
The 4GB plan has a validity of only 10 days, while the other two are valid for 28 days each.
4G THIS YEAR
Separately, the company plans to launch 4G services in the Dec to February period. Though it got 4G spectrum in 2010, alongside private players, it has not launched services yet due to a cash crunch.
The company, however, has started a rejuvenation mission in the last two years, spurred by the new government at the center.
It is also likely that it will be merged with Mumbai and Delhi operations of Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd for greater scale.
| Data STV in Rs. (Inclusive service Tax) | Promotional bundled free Usage during Promotional offer | Validity of freebies(in calendar days) |
| 156 | 4 GB | 10 |
| 198 | 7 GB | 28(24 for SZ) |
| 291 | 14 GB | 28(30 for SZ) |
| 549 | 30 GB | 30 |