BharatNet Project

In Context 

• The implementation of BharatNet has slowed and is likely to miss the 2025 completion deadline owing to a number of factors.

Progress made so far 

• As of February 2022, only about 1.72 lakh of the initially targeted 2.5 lakh gram panchayats had been connected to the central grid under BharatNet. 
• Of these, 1.5 lakh gram panchayats had been connected by 2017, within the first three years of the project being re-christened ‘BharatNet’.

About BharatNet Project

• It is a project envisioned by the Government of India to digitally connect all the Gram  Panchayats (GPs) and Villages of India. 
• It originally aimed to provide broadband services at 100 Mbps to around 2.5 lakh gram panchayats of the country.
• It is a highly scalable network infrastructure accessible on a non-discriminatory basis.
• It is the world’s largest rural connectivity scheme to be connected by the Optical Fibre network.
• Aim: To provide on-demand, affordable broadband connectivity of 2 Mbps to 20 Mbps for all households of India especially in rural areas.
• Implementing Agency: The project is being implemented by Bharat Broadband Network Limited (BBNL) through a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV).
• Funding: The entire project is being funded by the Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF), which was set up for improving telecom services in rural and remote areas of the country.
• The scope of work under BharatNet PPP Project includes:
  • Connecting the remaining unconnected GPs under BharatNet project (Phase 1 & Phase 2) and all the inhabited Villages beyond the GPs.
  • Upgradation of the existing BharatNet Network from Linear to Ring topology.
  • Operation and Maintenance (O&M) and Utilisation of the existing as well as the newly deployed network.
• Support: Central Public Sector in Undertakings (CPSUs) BSNL, RailTel, and PGCIL are providing the optical fibre network for broadband connections for the BharatNet project.
• Benefits:

• It would reduce the cost of broadband services in India.
• It would have advantages like easy maintenance, faster implementation, and utilisation of the present power line infrastructure.
• It would provide internet connectivity to citizens especially in rural areas via Wi-Fi Hotspots.
• It would provide a boost to the economy and would generate around 10 crore man-days of employment during the rollout of the project.
• It will help in the expedition of government’s initiatives such as Make In India, Start-up India, Stand-up India etc
• It is considered to be the backbone of ‘Digital India’ aiming to reduce the digital divide between urban and rural India.

Source:IE