DoT To Provide Broadband In 5,000 Rural Blocks

The government recently announced it would provide broadband connectivity – high speed Internet services – to remaining 5,000 rural blocks with financial support from the Universal Service Obligation Fund soon after the allocation of spectrum through the e-auction process.

The Department of Telecom in a statement said that it would connect 5,000 rural blocks in the country by wireless broadband soon after the spectrum allocation process to cover all villages that come within a radius of 10 kilometres of the taluka/ block headquarters was over.

In each block, about 40 institutional users such as schools, public health centres, panchayats and community service centres (CSC) will get benefit from the broadband connectivity, it said.

There are total 6,000 rural blocks in the country and BSNL is already providing Internet services to 1,000 such blocks.

DoT's initiative is likely to cover the remaining blocks and the CSCs, and the department is also planning to support Wireline Broadband by USOF wherever feasible, the statement said.

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To meet the wireless broadband plan, the department has held discussions with technology providers, telecom service providers and Internet service providers to formalise the modalities of tender procedures, specification/deliverable formulation and benchmark settings, it added.

The government's broadband plans will be supported by USOF as per the above statement. (PTI)