KATHMANDU: Nepal Telecom is likely to begin trials of the first 5G technology from June in Nepal.

If things go as planned, the much-hyped 5G technology will roll out for commercial purposes by the end of mid-July 2022 — the end of the current fiscal year– offering faster connections, higher throughput, and more capacity than 4G cellular network, benefiting areas of high traffic such as public places.

Nepal currently has 4G networks established in January 2017.

The telecom regulatory body Nepal Telecommunications Authority (NTA) submitted a proposal to the National Frequency Determining Committee to allow 5G operation in the country in February last year.

NTA will provide spectrum to telecom operators without cost to carry out 5G trials for one year, without charging users during the test period.

Meanwhile, private telecom operator Ncell also applied for carrying out 5G trials, however, NTA is yet to respond to the proposal.