Power Grid plans foray into telecom sector

The Power Grid Corporation of India Limited is on the way to becoming a telecom service provider. Its CMD R P Singh said the transmission major is working on putting a 20,000-km telecom-network in place so as to provide an affordable highway for telecommunication using ultra modern and eco-friendly techniques.

The national grid has already diversified into the telecom sector to utilise the spare capacity of its Load Dispatch Centres (ULDCs), thereby leveraging its countrywide transmission infrastructure. "In a long run, we have also decided to enter the basic telephony segment," Singh said.

He said agreements have been signed with leading telecom players like MTNL, BSNL and Reliance for using the Power Grid's telecom network.

Most part of the telecom network, connecting cities like Delhi, Chandigarh, Jammu, Jaipur, Lucknow, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Pune, Hyderabad, Bangalore and Chennai, besides the capitals in northeastern region, has already been operationalised.