 |
| GOING PLACES |
Calcutta, May 13: Cellular service provider Aircel will launch operations in the city by the end of this year.
The company is a 74-per-cent subsidiary of Malaysia’s Maxis Communications Berhad. The city will be the headquarters of the company for the eastern region. Aircel is already present in Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand and Orissa. Aircel will be the sixth GSM service provider in the city.
Customers in the city can look forward to special offers such as a complete pre-paid package for Rs 1,599.
This includes a BenQ-Siemens colour handset worth Rs 2,699, free talk time of Rs 688, start-up kit worth Rs 100, lifetime validity recharge and 100 per cent talktime on subsequent recharges.
Post-paid subscribers can go for rentals of Rs 101 or Rs 201. “We have taken up an area of 35,000 sq ft close to our office in the Infinity building in Sector V. The new centre will house 500 people within six months,” said Rohit Chandra, chief executive officer of Aircel’s north and east zones.
Aircel got an all-India licence in November 2006 and spectrum for the city circle last month. Aircel will set up 400 towers and share another 400 with others. In Bengal Aircel has 650 towers.
Analysts estimate a million customers for the company in two years.
In March, Airtel added 43,889 subscribers in the city, followed by Hutch at 38,070 and BSNL at 25,513.
The city and Chennai almost have the same number of subscribers, though the figures are lower than Delhi and Mumbai.
Hutch has 12.73 lakh customers in the city, while in Delhi and Mumbai it has around 23-24 lakh subscribers.
Other circles
The company plans to launch services in Uttar Pradesh (east and west) and Kerala by March 2008, followed by New Delhi and Mumbai.
The cellular service provider is present in nine circles — Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Bengal, Orissa, Bihar, Tamil Nadu, Chennai, Northeast and Assam. The number of subscribers in Bengal has touched 175,000 in eight months.
The company adds around 20,000 to 25,000 customers every month. Aircel’s Bihar circle has added 75,000 subscribers in two months.
