Huawei is powering telecom operator BSNL’s next generation networks (NGN) initiative.
BSNL is currently replacing its existing equipment in telephone exchanges in Chennai Telephones and Tamil Nadu circles with Internet Protocol (IP)-based NGN switches in phases.
The total Capex for the transition from outdated time-switching telephone exchanges to NGNs, which will address future needs, is not revealed. It is expected that the migration would be completed in the next three to four years.
Upgrading of telephone exchanges to NGN is also under way in the Tamil Nadu circle which recently placed an order for gear worth Rs 11 crore.
The state-run BSNL is the country’s largest wireline telecoms.
The migration — managed by the Chinese telecom gear maker Huawei — to a higher network will be seamless for BSNL customers. Once the NGN is in place, users can expect much improved voice quality and broadband experience, The Hindu reported.
The migration to IP-driven packet-based switches and servers will set the stage for Fixed Mobile Convergence (FMC) that is touted as the next level in telecom evolution, the report said.
The FMC breaks down the distinctions between fixed and mobile networks and provides customers seamless inter-operability of wired and wireless voice and broadband services at home, office or while on the move.
In Chennai Telephones, a two-phase plan has been worked out to upgrade 48 telephone exchanges to NGN levels.
In the first phase, BSNL is targeting to replace equipment over 15 years old in 11 telephones exchanges, including exchanges such as Kodambakkam, K. K. Nagar and Mambalam.
An estimated 55,000 telephone lines will migrate to NGN in the first phase to be completed by December. Phase II of the plan involves upgrading 37 exchanges.
The roll out of NGN architecture of switches and servers networking close to a million landlines in the Chennai Telephones network will take at least three years.
The cash strapped BSNL is utilizing Huawei’s NGN architecture in 21 telecom divisions, including Coimbatore, Madurai, Salem and Tiruchi and is expected to be complete in about seven months.
