BSNL in free fall as mobile subscribers, landlines, revenue nosedive in Kashmir

Srinagar, Mar 3: The Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has seen a significant decline in mobile subscribers, landline connections, and broadband usage over the past five years in Kashmir, posing a severe threat to the telecommunication company to continue its survival.

As per the official statistics, the BSNL has witnessed a downward trend in mobile subscribers which has gone down from 7.34 lakh in 2019 to 5 lakh in January 2024

The official figures obtained by M M Shuja under the RTI Act have revealed a worrisome trend for BSNL’s mobile services, with the number of subscribers dwindling from 7.34 lakhs in 2019 to a mere five lakhs in January 2024.

The decline has been steady, witnessing drops from 7.34 lakhs in 2020 to 6.54 lakhs in 2022, and further plummeting to 5.7 lakhs in 2023. The number was further reduced to 5 lakh at the beginning of 2024.

This staggering decline has raised concerns about BSNL’s competitiveness in the highly competitive telecom market.

As per the official figures, the landline connections have also witnessed a steep decline from 43,000 in 2019 to 25,441 in January 2023. The numbers did show a temporary rise to 56,805 in 2020 but experienced a subsequent decline, reaching 42,231 in 2021 and further going down to 32,659 in 2022. The numbers have further gone down to 25441 in 2023.

The official figures have pointed out the BSNL’s financial woes as the revenue generated from Landline services has witnessed a sharp decline. From Rs 10 crore in the financial year 2020-21, the revenue dipped to Rs 6.53 crore in 2022-23. However, a glimmer of hope has been witnessed with a slight recovery, reaching Rs 8.53 crore till December 2023.

As per the official document, the BSNL’s report has indicated a significant portion of landline connections serving State and Central Government departments.

The report reveals that due to non-payment of bills, these connections often face outgoing call restrictions, and after two weeks, all services are blocked.

“Restoration occurs automatically upon bill clearance,” the official document reads.

The official document produced by BSNL has however stated that the telecom company was actively working on expanding its network coverage in Kashmir, with tower installations underway at 448 sites as part of the 4G saturation projects.

“Currently, the company boasts 500 locations with towers in Kashmir, and upon completion, the network will be available across all regions of the Kashmir Valley,” the official document reads.

Notably, the BSNL’s broadband services have also seen a dip in active connection as well as revenue generation. The BSNL broadband has witnessed a substantial decrease from 19,203 connections in 2019 to a mere 4,828 in 2023.

Following this, the revenue generation has plummeted from Rs 13.78 crore in 2020-21 to Rs 2.19 crore in December 2023.