Vodafone Idea, BSNL begin talks to share telecom infrastructure

department of telecommunications (DoT) to a parliamentary panel, come as both operators grapple with capital constraints and uneven network strength across regions, prompting a rethink on overlapping network infrastructure.“Discussions have started between the two of them. The Department will report progress regarding this by next year,” telecom secretary Amit Agrawal told the parliamentary committee as cited in its report dated 16 March available on the Lok Sabha website.The parliamentary committee on communications and information technology, chaired by member of parliament Nishikant Dubey, has asked DoT to facilitate a structured and time-bound decision on comprehensive infrastructure sharing between the two.“The committee are of the view that, where there is direct or indirect government participation in the utilization of towers, duplication of creation of infrastructure and unwanted capital expenditure can be avoided,” it said in the report tabled in Lok Sabha on 16 March.The panel added that in regions where one operator has a stronger presence than the other, collaborative use of towers, fibre, spectrum and other network assets could expand service reach, optimise resource use, reduce expenditure, increase connectivity and accelerate 5G rollout.It has also asked the telecom department to prepare and submit, within six months, a detailed analysis on the sharing of towers, fibre, spectrum, and other network infrastructure, outlining progress, modalities and estimated financial savings to ensure optimal use of public resources and efficient nationwide 5G deployment.Communications minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, however, told Mint that any such arrangement would be a commercial decision.