BharatNet Last-Mile Gaps and Amended BharatNet Programme
Why in the news
A newspaper report says that only a fraction of home fibre links under BharatNet actually work, so fibre laid in villages is not reaching users properly.
Key facts
- Finding: about 45% of FTTH connections commissioned are currently active.
- Problems: last-mile hurdles, operation and maintenance gaps, low awareness.
- Original name: National Optical Fibre Network (NOFN); Cabinet nod 25 October 2011; renamed BharatNet in 2015.
- Goal: broadband for 2.5 lakh Gram Panchayats to support e-health, e-education and e-governance.
- Funding: Digital Bharat Nidhi (DBN).
Amended BharatNet Program (ABP)
| Feature | Detail |
|---|---|
| Approved | 4 August 2023, Union Cabinet |
| Outlay | Rs.1.39 lakh crore (about USD 16.9 billion) |
| Aims | Upgrade Phase I and II networks, connect remaining GPs, last-mile FTTH (target 1.5 crore connections) |
| Project manager | BSNL, single agency |
| Architecture | IP-MPLS ring-based, replacing linear design; ring gives redundancy and fault tolerance |
| Operations | 10 years via Centralised Network Operating Centre plus State NOCs |
| Payments | To implementing agencies on service quality agreements |
About BBNL
- Special Purpose Vehicle set up on 25 February 2012 under the Companies Act, 1956.
- Works under the Department of Telecommunications, Ministry of Communications; handles building and running NOFN/BharatNet; headquartered in New Delhi.
About Digital Bharat Nidhi
- Formerly the Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF); renamed in 2024.
- Pays for telecom growth in rural and remote India.
- Fed by the Universal Service Levy, about 5% of telecom operators’ Adjusted Gross Revenue; corpus about Rs.1,71,588.7 crore.
BharatNet Udyamis model
- Village-Level Entrepreneurs deliver local services under a PPP, much like a telecom franchisee.
- Revenue shared 50:50 between government and entrepreneur; government bears infrastructure cost up to homes, VLEs run and maintain.
Exam angle
- Implementer: BBNL (SPV, 2012); fund: DBN (ex-USOF).
- Numbers: 2.5 lakh GPs, Rs.1.39 lakh crore, 1.5 crore FTTH target.
- Ministry: Communications (DoT).