Rediff On The Net, Infotech: Reliance Mobile set to launch in Orissa


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October 1, 1997

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Reliance Mobile set to launch in Orissa

Reliance Telecom's cellular service in Orissa is all set to take off following receipt of the mandatory clearance from the Telecom Engineering Committee. With this, Orissa becomes the first state where Reliance Telecom's cellular service will be fully operational.

According to informed sources, connectivity with the Department of Telecommunication's circuit will be made available to subscribers of Reliance Mobile, the brand name for Reliance Telecom's cellular service.

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Reliance Mobile will now be connected to the 'public switch telecom network' system. So far, the service provider could provide connectivity only between one mobile phone and another.

While the TEC clearance has been received for operations within the Bhubaneswar municipal area, TEC clearances for Cuttack and Puri are awaited. They are expected after the coming Puja season.

In the second phase, cellular services will be introduced in other major towns such as Rourkela and Sambalpur.

Reliance has been awarded the licence to provide cellular telephone services in Orissa, besides other states, for 10 years. The licence fee for the Orissa circle is Rs 890 million.

The launch date had been delayed because of the lack of clearance from TEC and DoT. Now that the clearances have been received, a formal launch on an "auspicious day" is expected soon. TEC clearance is mandatory to ensure that the equipment put up by the service provider is compatible with the PSTN system.

DoT accords the clearance to enable the service provider to start commercial operations.

The company has over 300 customers in Bhubaneswar and has a target of around 10,000 Reliance Mobile subscribers in Orissa by March 1998.

Reliance Telecom has tied up with Nynak of the US, the latter being the former's technical partner. The company has secured licences to provide cellular telephone services in seven telecom circles across 13 states.

These states include Orissa, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, West Bengal and Assam, besides the entire northeast.

The total licence fee being paid by the company for a 10-year period for all the telecom circles works out to around Rs 3 billion. The cellphone service of Reliance Telecom will be known by the name of 'Reliance Mobile' in all the telecom circles where the service is provided.

- Compiled from the Indian media

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