OVERVIEW
- BharatNet is a mission by Bharat Broadband Network Limited (BBNL).
- It is the world’s widest rural broadband project.
- It is a network that helps in providing affordable high-speed broadband to the rural population.
- This project was first launched in 2011 under the name National Optical Fibre Network (NOFN) and then renamed as BharatNet in 2015.
- It is a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) framework by the Government of India under the Companies Act, 1956 with a permitted capital of Rs 1000 crore.
- At first, it was under the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, which was split into the Ministry of Communications and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology in July 2016.
- Currently, it is being executed by the Department of Telecommunication under the Ministry of Communications.
- The whole project is funded by Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF)
AIM: –
- To connect all the gram panchayats across the country and provide connectivity to all rural areas.
- To ease e-governance, e-health, e-education, e-banking, and other services to rural areas.
IMPLEMENTATION: –
Its implementation is in 3 phases –
- FIRST PHASE – Grant gram panchayats broadband connectivity by allocating underground Optical Fibre Cable (OFC) lines by December 2017.
- SECOND PHASE – Grant all gram panchayats connectivity by using an optimal mix of underground fiber, fiber over power lines, radio, and satellite by March 2019.
- THIRD PHASE – From 2019 to 2023, a future poof network, with a ring topology would be created to provide superfluity.
Recently, BBNL has invited Global tender for up-gradation pf BharatNet across 16 states (Kerala, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, Nagaland, and Arunachal Pradesh) for 19,041 crore rupees.
The present BharatNet was connecting all the gram panchayats of the country and now the scope of BharatNet has been increased to connect all villages of the country
