India Plans $3.5 Billion National Optical Network

According to foreign media reports, on Tuesday, the Indian government issued a statement announcing its decision to invest INR 200 billion ($3.5 billion) in building a national optical fiber network to provide high-speed broadband connectivity services in rural areas.

The statement said that this network will be launched by a special purpose vehicle, Bharat Broadband Network Ltd, jointly owned by the federal government and the Universal Service Obligation (USO) Fund organization.

The USO Fund organization was established by the federal Department of Telecommunications to provide subsidies to rural areas and regions not commercially covered by telecom networks.

Bharat Broadband will lay approximately 500,000 kilometers of optical fiber, which will enable government departments to roll out online services and applications nationwide, although the statement did not provide any timeline.

The creation of this network and its sharing with other telecom operators will reduce connectivity costs. The statement said that this national optical fiber network will help the government achieve its broadband penetration targets.