“The 4G technology would work, and is very critical for India from a security and economic perspective, because you will get to make in India and also you will ensure that there are no hidden backdoors which can be exploited later on,” Rajaraman told ET.
The locally developed 4G technology could be a milestone for India as it might help reduce dependency on multinationals such as Finland’s Nokia and Sweden’s Ericsson.
In July last year, BSNL selected the TCS-driven consortium, including the state-owned Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DoT), which designed and developed core equipment indigenously. TCS and C-DoT deployed a trial network for BSNL at Ambala and Chandigarh with a 120-day deadline, which was later extended up to December 31, 2021, and later to January 2022 , and a further breather was given to the Tata-backed group to fully conform to network tests. “I feel that maybe in April, it (proof of concept or PoC completion) may be announced. I have personally visited some of the sites. Performance is good. I think there are a few more tests which have to be completed while the most critical ones are all done,” said Rajaraman.