BSNL asked to improve services, regain public confidence

Communications and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has asked state-run Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) to improve services and ensure that better quality of signals is maintained, specially in the border and extremism-affected areas, and regain confidence of people.

He was speaking at a meeting with MPs from Bihar, Meghalaya, Manipur and Nagaland, an official statement said here on Tuesday.

The meeting was part of the series of meetings planned to make telecom officials directly answerable to the parliamentary representatives so as to have a firsthand account of public sectors performance, problems faced and possible solutions.

Prasad said the management of BSNL will also be expected to regain confidence of people by improving services and response.

He stressed that the government is committed to revive BSNL and numbers of initiatives are in the pipeline to bring it back to the position of market leader.

A major initiative has been launched by BSNL to improve quality of signal for which it plans to add another 1,150 towers during this fiscal in Bihar alone.

Prasad has directed the Department of Telecom to call five such meetings so that all members of parliament are given opportunity to raise issues directly with officials concerned.

The meeting was also informed that the public sector which came into being only in October 2000 has a net worth of Rs.51,203 crore with an equity capital of Rs.12,500 crore only.