# Parliamentary panel seeks state-wise BharatNet performance audit 2026-08-10T08:16:19+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet A parliamentary panel has flagged serious gaps in BharatNet, the government's rural broadband scheme, and demanded a state-wise and model-wise performance audit. The Standing Committee on Communications and Information Technology found that as of February 28, 2026, only 78,899 of India's 2.64 lakh Gram Panchayats had active Points of Presence for broadband. The Department of Telecommunications has laid 7.19 lakh km of optical fibre and spent Rs 40,635 crore from the Digital Bharat Nidhi on the project, yet utilisation remains sub-optimal. Only 9.48 lakh Fibre-to-the-Home connections are active in rural areas. The panel has sought a revised, time-bound roadmap with clear accountability for universal Gram Panchayat connectivity. ## Coverage - telecom.economictimes.indiatimes.com Tags: BharatNet, digital India, DoT, gram panchayats, Parliamentary panel, rural broadband Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/parliamentary-panel-seeks-state-wise-bharatnet-performance-audit/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/parliamentary-panel-seeks-state-wise-bharatnet-performance-audit/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes.