India's Idea Cellular aims to roll out LTE to 750 towns across 10 of the nation's 22 telecom circles this year.
The operator's chief corporate affairs officer Rajat Mukarji toldthe Hindu Business Line that it is right on target with its rollout plans. The operator first launched LTE services in the southern states of India in December.
Mukrarji was speaking at the launch of LTE services in the state of Kerala.
The operator recently received approval to use its 1800-MHz spectrum in the southern circles for LTE services, and is steadily re-purposing its existing 2G and 3G towers for 4G.
Commenting on the state of readiness for mobile broadband within rural India, Mukarji said the company is focusing its 3G rollout on smaller towns. But he noted that other factors need to fall in place, including affordable device prices.
Indian mobile operators have been ramping up their 4G rollout efforts in anticipation of the new competition triggered by the long-awaited launch of LTE services by Reliance Jio Infocomm, which holds a pan-India wireless broadband license.