en.Wedoany.com Reported - The Digital India Fund (Digital Bharat Nidhi, DBN), under the Department of Telecommunications, along with the Government of Gujarat and other stakeholders, has signed a supplementary agreement to implement the revised BharatNet project in a state-led model, accelerating broadband network deployment in the state's rural areas.
The supplementary agreement was signed by the Digital India Fund (DBN), the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), the Government of Gujarat, Gujarat Fibre Grid Network Limited (GFGNL), and Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL). The signing ceremony took place at Sanchar Bhawan in New Delhi, with P. Bharathi, Secretary of the Gujarat Department of Science and Technology, and Dinesh Kumar Garg, Deputy Director General (ABP Implementation-I) of the DoT, signing on behalf of the respective parties, witnessed by Shyamal Misra, Administrator of the Digital India Fund.
The Union Cabinet approved the revised BharatNet project on August 4, 2023, aiming to upgrade, integrate, and expand the existing network to ensure that all Gram Panchayats and villages receive robust, future-proof broadband connectivity on demand. In Gujarat, the project will be implemented by Gujarat Fibre Grid Network Limited (GFGNL). The plan covers a total of 14,287 Gram Panchayats, including upgrading the broadband network of 14,264 Phase I and Phase II Gram Panchayats from a linear topology to a ring topology to enhance network resilience, and incorporating 23 newly formed Gram Panchayats. Additionally, connectivity will be provided on demand to 3,895 villages to strengthen "last-mile" access.
The Government of India has approved financial support of INR 5,629 crore for the project's implementation in Gujarat. It is expected that with this government funding, the project will facilitate fiber connectivity for over 500,000 rural households and significantly improve the delivery of e-governance, online education, telemedicine, digital payments, and citizen-centric digital services in rural and remote areas across the state.
