Telecom Services In Hilly Areas: What Govt Said

New Delhi: Various projects under Digital Bharat Nidhi (DBN) are being implemented to enhance telecom infrastructure in the hilly areas across the country, the Central Government told Parliament. While responding to the question posed by Lok Sabha MP Thanga Tamil Selvan, Minister of State for Communications and Rural Development Dr Chandra Sekhar Pemmasan shared the information.

Replacing the Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF), the government formulated the DBN to provide accessible and affordable telecommunication services, particularly in underserved rural, remote, and urban areas.

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Some of the projects implemented under this initiative are:

1. 4G Saturation Project – provides 4G mobile services to covered villages nationwide

2. Border Out Posts (BoP)/Border Intelligence Posts (BIP) Project: facilitates 4G mobile services to border posts.

3. Left Wing Extremism (LWE) Affected Areas Scheme:extends mobile services to Left Wing Extremism impacted regions.

4. Aspirational Districts Scheme: provides mobile services in Aspirational Districts.

5. Comprehensive Telecom Development Plan (CTDP): extends mobile coverage to uncovered villages and National Highways in the North Eastern Region (NER).

6. BharatNet Project: aims to provide broadband connectivity to all Gram Panchayats and villages on demand in a phased manner.

Regarding the question concerning the increasing BSNL subscribers and about the service provider’s quarterly profit, Minister responded that TRAI’s website has all the data on telecom subscribers in India, including BSNL’s customers and this information is updated regularly. As of June 30 this year, BSNL has installed a total of 95,537 4G sites since September 2023, and more than 90,000 of them are active. The 4G technology can also be upgraded to 5G in the future, the Minister added.

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Continuing further, Minister shared that with the support of government revival packages, BSNL has started making operating profits from the financial year 2020-21. The national telecom provider earned a net profit of Rs. 262 Crore in the third quarter of the Financial Year 2024-25 and has also earned Rs. 280 Crore in net profit during the fourth quarter of the same year.