MTNL to add 50,000 broadband connections by March '08

New Delhi, Nov 28 (UNI) State-owned telecom provider Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) today said it will add 50,000 broadband connections by this fiscal-end and has placed an order worth Rs 1,63,000 crore for the equipment purchase.

''We will add 50,000 broadband connections to our existing 5.5 lakh customers by March 2008, as we will receive equipment worth Rs 15,000 crore by the end of this month and remaining instruments worth Rs 1,48,000 crore is likely to delivered by the end of next month,'' MTNL Executive Director A K Arora told reporters on the sidelines of launch of multi-lingual message service here.

The company, a service provider in Delhi and Mumbai, has 8-9 lakh broadband connections in waiting, Mr Arora said.

''With the availability of equipment, we will try our best to fulfil the demand,'' he said.

Although it is ''difficult'' to achieve the set target of nine million broadband connections by the end of this year, he said.

Currently, the total broadband subscribers in the country stands at 25 lakh, a short by 65 lakh of the set target.

Mr Arora further added that the firm will set up 392 base transmission stations (BTS) to its existing 660 BTS by the end of this financial year.

At present, the company is adding over 40-45 thousand mobile subscribers every month with an increase of 8,000 landline connections in this month, Mr Arora said.

UNI