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Deadlines have been extended multiple times, including through December 2023, June 2024, and the end of 2024 | File image | (Photo: PTI)
All 25,000 villages in India that remain without telecom and mobile internet services will be connected by mid-2025, ensuring 100 per cent saturation, Telecom Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said on Wednesday. He added that state-run telco BSNL will roll out its 4G network with 100,000 towers by the middle of next year.
Speaking at the 51st National Management Convention of the All India Management Association (AIMA), Scindia said that while 4.5 lakh 5G towers have been erected nationwide, there are still villages that remain unconnected. “We have committed to installing close to 20,000 towers and committed Rs 45,000 crore towards that initiative by mid-2025,” he said.
Scindia noted that the North East has a significant number of such villages, around 6,000. Through a commitment of Rs 6,000 crore under the Bharat Nidhi fund, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has managed to connect about half of these villages, Scindia, who also serves as the Minister for the Development of North Eastern Region, said.
The Minister highlighted three broad targets set by the government: achieving 100 per cent connectivity, promoting indigenous telecom production, and adopting future-ready technologies.
India is now producing 30 crore mobile phones, and as part of the Bharat 6G Alliance, the government has set a target for India to hold 10 per cent of international patents, Scindia added.
Slow progress so far
However, the government has missed several previous deadlines. In July 2019, then Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad asked telcos to connect all 43,000 villages without basic telephony services within a year. In April 2023, then Minister of State for Telecom Devusinh Chauhan stated that all 38,000-40,000 villages without 4G connectivity would be covered by 2024.
The villages across the country, mostly in remote and difficult-to-access areas, are to be connected through BSNL’s 4G network rollout. However, BSNL’s plans to launch 4G services—years after private telecom providers such as Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, and Vodafone Idea rolled it out—have been repeatedly delayed.
Deadlines have been extended multiple times, including through December 2023, June 2024, and the end of 2024.
First Published: Sep 11 2024 | 1:51 PM IST
