New Delhi: RailTel Corporation of India Ltd., a Central Public Sector Enterprise (CPSE) under the Ministry of Railways, has been awarded the prestigious Navratna status by the Department of Public Enterprises (DPE). RailTel becomes the 22nd CPSE to achieve this distinction, marking a significant milestone in its journey of growth and innovation.
Founded on September 26, 2000, as an in-house telecom service provider for Indian Railways, RailTel has rapidly evolved into one of India’s largest neutral telecom infrastructure providers and a trusted end-to-end IT and ICT service provider. Achieving the Navratna status within just 24 years of its establishment highlights RailTel's dynamic growth trajectory and its potential for further expansion.
With the new status, RailTel will gain greater financial autonomy, enabling the company to expand its network through increased capital expenditure. This autonomy will also allow RailTel to explore and expand its business ventures internationally, further solidifying its position as a key player in the telecom and IT services sectors.
Commenting on this achievement, Sanjai Kumar, Chairman and Managing Director of RailTel, stated, “We are thrilled to receive this remarkable recognition. As we step into our 25th foundation year, the Navratna status is the perfect beginning to our silver jubilee celebrations. I extend my sincere gratitude to our parent Ministry – the Ministry of Railways, along with the Ministry of Finance, DPE, DoT, MeitY, other government departments, and our stakeholders for their support and guidance. I would also like to express my deepest appreciation to the entire RailTel team whose hard work and dedication have made this achievement possible.”
RailTel’s infrastructure includes an extensive optical fibre network of 62,000 route kilometers along railway tracks, a 21,000-kilometer citywide access network, over 11,000 Points of Presence (PoPs), and 1,100 telecom towers nationwide. Additionally, RailTel has established one of the world’s largest integrated public Wi-Fi networks, offering services at 6,112 railway stations across India. This robust infrastructure is managed by a Central Network Operation Centre (CNOC) and four region-based Network Operation Centres (NOCs).
As a unique Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) with telecom licenses such as IP-1, NLD, and ISP, RailTel also offers in-house Tier III data center services, operates its own Security Operation Centre, and provides MeitY-empaneled cloud services. The company’s extensive service portfolio includes MPLS VPN, leased lines, tower co-location, data center services, cloud services, security operation center services, HD video conferencing, Aadhaar-based authentication systems, e-tendering, retail broadband under the RailWire brand, IT and ICT projects, railway signaling projects, and more.
The attainment of Navratna status is expected to further bolster RailTel’s capabilities and drive its future growth, both domestically and internationally, as the company continues to expand its footprint and service offerings in the telecom and IT sectors. /BI/
