Centre asks BSNL to not use Chinese equipment for 4G upgrade: Reports
New Delhi/IBNS: The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has decided to not use Chinese equipment in upgrading the state-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) service to 4G.
The ministry of telecommunications has decided to "firmly tell BSNL" not to use Chinese equipment in view of security issues, NDTV quoting sources reported.
The department will, therefore, rework in the tender in sync with the issue.
This comes in the wake of India-China face-off at Galwan Valley in Eastern Ladakh on Monday night in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed.
The government might even ask the private telecom service providers to reduce dependence on Chinese companies.
Companies like Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea have been working with Huawei in their current networks, while ZTE works with state-run BSNL.
Earlier, Indian intelligence agencies have asked the government to ban or advise people against the use of 52 Chinese apps over concerns of being unsafe and stealing of a large chunk of user information, a media report said.
The intel warning includes popular applications like video conferencing app Zoom, short-video app TikTok, and utility apps like the UC Browser, Xender, SHAREit and Clean-master, a Hindustan Times report said.
The intel recommendations have been backed by the National Security Council Secretariat which also red-flagged these apps pointing serious security threats to India, a senior government official told the newspaper.
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