State-wise and Year-wise total number of Gram Panchayats (GPs) connected by Optical Fibre Cable (OFC)/Satellite link under the Bharat Net Project is given in Annexure-I.

BharatNet project is being implemented in a phased manner to provide broadband connectivity to all the Gram Panchayats (around 2.64 lakh) in the country. Till Oct end, 2024, under BharatNet Phase-I and Phase-II; 2,14,283 GPs are service ready. This is against the planned network of 2,22,343 GPs in Phase-I and Phase-II.

Challenges were faced in expansion of telecommunications infrastructure in rural and remote areas, such as:

1. 1. Difficult terrains (including Hilly/ Rocky) and widely dispersed villages, especially in northeastern states
   2. Limited working season specially in northeastern states
   3. Difficulty in getting Right of Way (RoW) issues in various states
   4. Non-availability of stable power supply in GPs

Steps undertaken to improve quality of internet services in rural regions and to bridge the urban-rural divide:

1. 1. 4G Saturation of uncovered Villages and upgrade of 2G/3G Mobile coverage to 4G.
   2. Providing submarine cable connectivity to Lakshadweep and Andaman and Nicobar Islands
   3. Engaging agencies to address the issue of fibre cut for existing BharatNet network Phase I/II
   4. Approval of Amended BharatNet Program to provide high speed broadband connectivity to all inhabited villages in the country. The design improvement, at a cost of Rs. 1,39,579 crore, in Amended BharatNet Program addresses several shortcomings of earlier BharatNet which is as follows:
      1. Optical fiber connectivity from Block to GP in Ring topology
      2. IP- MPLS network with Routers at Blocks and GPs
      3. Provision of optical fiber connectivity to non-GP villages on demand basis
      4. Provision for Operation and maintenance for 10 years, including monitoring of network uptime through Centralized Network Operating Centre (CNOC) and payment to Project Implementation Agency (PIA) as per Service Level Agreement (SLA)
      5. Provision of Power backup of adequate level at GPs and Blocks
      6. Provision of Remote Fibre Monitoring System (RFMS) at Block for fibre monitoring

This information was given by the Minister of State for Communications, Dr. Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha today.

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SB/DP/ARJ

Annexure-I

State-wise and Year-wise total number of Gram Panchayats connected under the BharatNet Project

Note: Delhi has no GPs and thus not taken up under BharatNet Project. Goa had its own similar broadband network and thus not taken up under Phase-I and Phase-II of BharatNet Project.

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