The number of BSNL subscribers is reducing at the rate of eight landline connections a day in Jamshedpur, with harried customers citing frequent call drops, line faults and dead phones as the reasons for making the switch to private players.

According to available data in the Jamshedpur SSA, the number of landline connections on May 10, 2016 was 42,486. By June 30, the number fell to 41,918.

By July 31, it was 41,701.

Though August numbers are yet to be tabled, eight subscribers on an average surrendered landline connections a day, said a BSNL source.

Sanjeev Singh, general manager of Jamshedpur secondary switching area, on August 24, attempted a large-scale damage control. In a news meet, Verma announced new landline customers would get free unlimited calls on all Sundays to any network from a BSNL landline.

But, attracting new customers seems to be a far cry for BSNL, which is finding it a challenge to retain old ones.

Swetabh Sinha, a resident of Dimna Road in Mango, who surrendered his "very old BSNL landline" recently, said: "Gone are the days of BSNL's services 24/7. Earlier, if there was a fault, the lineman would come and repair it after a single complaint. Recently, we had to wait for days. I got fed up and decided to surrender our BSNL landline."

Another longstanding customer, Pravin Singh of Sonari, also said he surrendered his BSNL landline as he was completely frustrated.

"A call from BSNL landline to any cellphone number of a private telecom provider simply does not connect in a single attempt. But, I find no such problem when I use a private landline. In that case, why will I pay rental every month for a BSNL landline?" Singh asked.

Asked why this decline in customer base, a BSNL insider alleged problems started cropping up during the tenure of B.N. Singh, former Jamshedpur SSA general manager, who had joined in May 2013, when the number of landline connections was 73,000.

Apparently, large-scale irregularities were reported during Singh's tenure, but he had been strict with the staff.

Singh was replaced by Sanjeev Verma on July 13 this year.

"Verma is too amiable," the source said, hinting subordinates get away without attending to complaints.

Verma, on his part, said they were putting every effort to improve landline services. "Our hard work will show and landline subscribers will stop having connectivity problems," he claimed.