New Delhi, Dec. 31: Bharti Tele-Ventures will launch its mobile services in the tsunami-hit Andaman and Nicobar Islands by March-end.

The company will invest Rs 20 crore for the project to mark the entry of the first private telecom operator in the Union territory.

The telecom service, offered under the brand name AirTel, will provide mobile services using the global system for mobile communications and the very small aperture terminal network in Andaman and Nicobar by March 31, 2005.

Last month, the company had completed a pre-feasibility study for setting up a mobile switching centre in the islands. But the tsunami has upset its plans. The company will now undertake a new study.

Sunil Bharti Mittal, chairman and group managing director of Bharti Enterprises, said: ?We have already started work on a war footing to set up the AirTel mobile network in Andaman and Nicobar. We understand the complexities of laying a network in an area which has been so badly affected by the disaster, but we are taking this as a mission and I am confident that this will be a significant measure to contribute towards the rehabilitation of Andaman and Nicobar.?