India's Reliance Jio Infocomm plans to make use of street light poles to extend its 4G LTE service, starting from the Mumbai suburbs. The Mukesh Ambani-led company has submitted a proposal to Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST), a public transportation service provider of Mumbai and greater Mumbai areas, for approval to use the space on the street lights in the city to install its pole units. Each pole unit will consist of a small cell supporting 4G LTE, a sandwich box, an unlicensed band radio, integrated kiosks, said the Operator.
According to Reliance Jio, the project will consist of the installation of its equipment on over 215 lamp posts in Mumbai's 'D' ward, and will commence with a trial that involves 25 poles, which will validate the availability and performance of the 4G service, According to Reliance Jio, BEST has already given its approval for the trial.
The company also said that it expects to spend Rs.1.5 lakh per pole for rental with an extra of Rs. 60,000 per pole to host the equipment. The company will also be providing 4G dongles and Mi-Fi devices which will let consumers use the 4G service from any phone that has Wi-Fi feature. Reliance Jio has also been working with other utility companies, including Kerala State Electricity Board, to facilitate similar deployments.
