Telecommunication and mobile internet services are still not available in 38,901 villages in India, as per data till March 2022, said minister of state for communications, Devusinh Chauhan in a reply to Lok Sabha.
According to this data by telecom service providers, department of telecommunications’ field unit and state governments, out of 6,44,131 villages, a total of 6,05,230 have telecommunication and mobile internet services. While the unavailability of telecom and internet services in ‘Digital India’ could trigger concerns related to a digital divide, Chauhan highlighted steps taken to connect villages that did not have these services. He said one of these steps included the ambitious BharatNet project, which was previously known as the National Optical Fibre Network.
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The minister told parliament that the Universal Service Obligation Fund or USOF 4G saturation scheme is expected to cover 24,680 villages with 4G, while 6,279 villages with 2G/3G connection will be upgraded to 4G. This is expected to cost over Rs 26,000 crore and the deadline set for this is December.
Additionally, it was noted that the BharatNet project, which is a major initiative by the central government, will connect all gram panchayats and villages with broadband infrastructure. The project is being implemented in two phases, with the first already completed and the second underway. The total funding for the project is Rs 42,068 crore and the deadline for completion is 2025.
“In total, 1,94,911 gram panchayats have been made service ready under the BharatNet project in the country. As on June 30, a sum of Rs 37,171.77 crore has been allocated under the BharatNet project from USOF. BharatNet has been utilised for providing 5,67,306 fibre to the home (FTTH) broadband connections as on July 3,” the minister said.
Chauhan also told parliament: “The government is implementing various schemes under USOF for expansion of telecom services through installation of mobile towers in rural and remote areas of the country. The improved coverage by the installation of new mobile towers leads to improvement in quality of mobile services.”
The response presented in parliament includes details about the provision of 4G mobile services in the northeastern region under the Comprehensive Telecom Development Programme, which is projected to cost Rs 3,637 crore.
Similarly, the Centre is planning to provide 4G mobile connectivity to 354 uncovered villages in border areas of Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Uttarakhand among other priority areas. The estimated cost of the project is Rs 337 crore.
The list of projects also includes the plan to provide 4G mobile connectivity to 7,287 uncovered villages in five aspirational districts of Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra and Odisha. The estimated cost for this is Rs 6,466 crore and the deadline is November.
Additionally, schemes also include providing 4G mobile connectivity to 502 uncovered villages in aspirational districts of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. There are also plans in place to provide 4G mobile coverage to 85 uncovered villages and seamless 4G mobile coverage of NH223 in Andaman and Nicobar Islands, which is expected to be completed in November.
The central government has initiated a submarine optical fibre cable (OFC) project between Chennai and Andaman and Nicobar Islands to provide high-speed internet connectivity, while a similar project between Kochi and Lakshadweep has also been approved.
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