BharatNet Project Could Power Internet at Rural Goa: Report

Reported by Tanuja K August 29th, 2023 at 07:04 pm

The BharatNet Project aims to connect every village in the country. Private companies don't want to accelerate their investments in rural pockets due to less expected returns. To ensure that no one in the country is digitally excluded, the BharatNet Project is run by the central government and recently, the union cabinet approved Rs 1.39 lakh crore for the modernisation of the BharatNet Project.

Highlights

BharatNet Project, an ambitious goal to bring internet connectivity at the gram-panchayat level across India could soon power the networks in rural Goa.
The Goa government has asked for help from the central government to lay fibre cable in Goa under the BharatNet scheme.
This project now aims to utilise village-level entrepreneurs to help boost the presence of internet connectivity in villages.

BharatNet

BharatNet Project, an ambitious goal to bring internet connectivity at the gram-panchayat level across India could soon power the networks in rural Goa. The Goa government has asked for help from the central government to lay fibre cable in Goa under the BharatNet scheme. On Monday, Pramod Sawant, Chief Minister of Goa said that a detailed project report (DPR) has already been sent to the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) with an aim to get funding from the central government. If approved, the funds can be used by the state to lay fibre cable in the rural corners of Goa to enable a seamless internet experience for consumers across the region.

According to a Navhindtimes report, Sawant was addressing the 26th Western Zonal Council meeting chaired by Amit Shah (Home Minister) at Gandhinagar in Gujarat. The minister said that the central government is currently considering the proposal and he hopes for a favourable outcome.

BharatNet Project Driving Digital Inclusion in India

The BharatNet Project aims to connect every village in the country with broadband. Private companies don't want to accelerate their investments in rural pockets due to less expected returns. To ensure that no one in the country is digitally excluded, the BharatNet Project is run by the central government and recently, the union cabinet approved Rs 1.39 lakh crore for the modernisation of the BharatNet Project. This project now aims to utilise village-level entrepreneurs to help boost the presence of internet connectivity in villages.

The government is targeting to connect over 6,40,000 villages to the internet in the next 2.5 years. The government will spend all the money on setting up the infrastructure while the village entrepreneur will look after the maintenance and operations of home connections. This will bring jobs to rural India and also take a huge load of responsibility off the shoulders of the government.