Indian TD-LTE provider recruits 100 engineers to help deploy 800 towers in Assam.

Reliance Jio Infocomm, the telco arm of Indian conglomerate Reliance Industries, has started work on deploying its 4G network.

The Economic Times reported late last week that the operator, which owns a nationwide licence to offer broadband wireless access (BWA) services, is investing between 6 billion rupees ($100.5 million) and 7 billion rupees ($117.2 million) in the northeastern state of Assam, where it is rolling out 800 towers to support its TD-LTE services there. Reliance Jio has so far recruited 100 engineers to work on the deployment. It has also started laying fiber in Assam and seven neighboring states.

"Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani has informed me about his company\'s plan to come here in a big way and roll out 4G services," Assam\'s chief minister, Tarun Gogoi, said in the report, adding that the project will create job opportunities for more than 3,000 people.

"We are expecting to finish this work by the year end or early next year," said Reliance Jio, in the report.

Reliance Industries obtained its BWA licence via the acquisition of Infotel in 2010, and while Mukesh Ambani has talked up the progress his company has made in terms of recruitment, vendor selection, and a $2.1 billion pact to share up to 45,000 towers with his brother Anil\'s mobile operation Reliance Communications, a firm commercial launch date has yet to have been announced.

"I remain stronger than ever in my belief that Reliance will, through the Reliance Jio initiative, radically transform the lives of 1.2 billion Indians," he said at the group\'s AGM in June.

He said Reliance Jio has taken "significant strides" towards achieving this ambition over the past 12 months, but cautioned that "our impatience to meet our goal demands a sense of urgency, but not careless haste".

"By the time we meet next year, I will report on the specifics of the substantial progress that we would (sic) have made," Ambani said.