Now Reading: Only 23% of Punjab gram panchayats upgraded under rural broadband plan
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Only 23% of Punjab gram panchayats upgraded under rural broadband plan
Nearly six years after Punjab became the first state to make all its Phase-II gram panchayats service-ready under BharatNet, only 23% have been upgraded under the Amended BharatNet Programme (ABP) approved in…
The Story in Brief
Nearly six years after Punjab became the first state to make all its Phase-II gram panchayats service-ready under BharatNet, only 23% have been upgraded under the Amended BharatNet Programme (ABP) approved in August 2023. The Union ministry of communications told the Rajya Sabha that 3,069 of 13,337 gram panchayats have been upgraded so far. Ferozepur leads with 362 upgraded panchayats, while Faridkot and Malerkotla have upgraded none.
The ministry attributed delays to Right of Way issues and frequent damage to optical fibre cables during development works. To address bottlenecks, the Centre has notified the Telecommunications (Right of Way) Rules, 2024, and adopted a ring-topology network with a dedicated operations centre. Meanwhile, 5G services have been rolled out across Punjab, with Ludhiana having the highest number of operational base transceiver stations at 2,995.
The Indian Opinion
The gap between a grand promise and on-ground reality is plain. Punjab was hailed as the first state to make all its Phase-II gram panchayats service-ready in 2020. Yet nearly six years later, only 23% have been upgraded under the revamped programme. The Centre blames Right of Way issues and damaged cables, but that explanation wears thin when 5G towers have mushroomed across the same state. If private telecom firms can navigate these hurdles for profit, why can't a public programme do the same for rural connectivity? The real test is simple: will every panchayat have functional broadband by 2026, or will the excuse list just grow longer?
Source: hindustantimes.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
