Telecom operators as well as the government through USOF (Universal Service Obligation Fund) are trying to connect all the villages with mobile networks. So far, more than 6 lakh villages in India have mobile connectivity. But a lot of work is still left as there are about 27,831 villages in the country that don't have mobile networks. BSNL (Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited) is provided funds via USOF to bring mobile networks to such villages.
Ashwini Vaishnaw, union IT and telecom minister, said in a written reply to Lok Sabha, "As on September '2023, out of 6,44,131 villages, around 6,16,300 number of villages are having mobile connectivity in the country, including 42,733 villages having mobile connectivity in the State of Rajasthan."
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However, not all of the connected villages have 4G networks. That is why the Indian government is working with various schemes, including the 4G saturation project to bring high-speed 4G networks to these villages. Bharti Airtel, earlier this year said that it had identified around 60,000 villages to deploy 4G sites.
Reliance Jio is also investing in bringing 4G networks to rural landscapes. Then there's BharatNet (now merged with BSNL), which is trying to bring fiber internet connectivity to all the villages and gram panchayats in India. Through the BharatNet initiative, already 2,07,592 gram panchayats have been connected with fiber. The BharatNet project is also funded by the USOF.
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With devices such as JioPhone Prime and JioPhone, Reliance Jio will try to acquire more customers in rural India. Thus, the telco would further invest aggressively in its retail channels to make sure its phones reach the darkest corners of the country and if there's a ready ecosystem of devices, Jio wouldn't mind investing in mobile networks in new rural regions.
