Lok Sabha Question No. 2972 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-17
Subject: Universal Mobile and Broadband Connectivity
Ministry: COMMUNICATIONS
Asked by: Smt. Delkar Kalaben Mohanbhai, Dr. Shivaji Bandappa Kalge, Shri Nilesh Dnyandev Lanke, Shri Gyaneshwar Patil

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS

LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2972 ANSWERED ON 17 TH  DECEMBER, 2025

## UNIVERSAL MOBILE AND BROADBAND CONNECTIVITY

†2972. SHRI NILESH DNYANDEV LANKE: DR. SHIVAJI BANDAPPA KALGE: SHRI GYANESHWAR PATIL: SMT. DELKAR KALABEN MOHANBHAI:

Will the Minister of COMMUNICATIONS be pleased to state:

(a) the current status of the initiatives taken by the Government to ensure universal mobile and broadband  connectivity  particularly    in  rural,  tribal  and  border  areas  of  the  country  including Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Dadra and Nagar Haveli;

(b) whether there is still major deficiencies in telecommunication infrastructure in aspirational districts  and  remote  areas  such  as  villages  lacking  internet  connectivity,  poor  mobile  network coverage and absence of high speed internet access and if so, the details thereof;

(c) the details of the steps being taken to accelerate the rollout of 4G and 5G services, improve call quality and internet reliability and bridge the digital divide between urban and rural areas; and

(d) whether the Government has conducted any independent assessment of service quality along with the plan being formulated to improve accountability of telecom service providers and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR COMMUNICATIONS AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT (DR. PEMMASANI CHANDRA SEKHAR)

(a) & (b) The Government has been undertaking various projects in a phased manner through Digital Bharat Nidhi (DBN) to provide 4G Mobile connectivity to uncovered inhabited villages and BharatNet project for broadband connectivity to all Gram Panchayats (GPs). These projects cover rural, tribal, and border areas across the country, including Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, and Dadra & Nagar Haveli.

As of October 2025, the status of villages having 4G mobile / broadband coverage is as below:

| State/Union Territory (UT)         | Total Villages   | Villages having 4G Mobile /Broadband coverage   |
|------------------------------------|------------------|-------------------------------------------------|
| Maharashtra                        | 43,931           | 42,593                                          |
| Madhya Pradesh                     | 55,058           | 53,860                                          |
| Dadra &Nagar Haveli and Daman& Diu | 95               | 95                                              |
| Total (All States and UTs)         | 6,44,131         | 6,30,676                                        |

(c) & (d) The  Government  has  taken  following  steps  to  accelerate  rollout  of  4G  and  5G services, improve quality of service, bridge the digital divide between urban and rural areas:

-  Assignment of spectrum for mobile services through auction;
-  Financial reforms to rationalize Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR), Bank Guarantees (BGs) and interest rates;
-  Removal of Spectrum Usage Charges for spectrum acquired in auction of 2022 and thereafter;
-  Simplification of procedure for SACFA (Standing Advisory Committee on Radio Frequency Allocations) clearance;
-  Notification of the Telecommunications (Right of Way) Rules, 2024 and launch of GatiShakti Sanchar portal to streamline right of way permissions, and time-bound permission for use of street furniture for installation of small cells and telecommunication lines;
-  Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has revised Quality of Service benchmarks on 02.08.2024 (effective from 01.10.2024) and has introduced separate benchmarks for call drops for 2G/3G and for 4G/5G services;
-  TRAI regularly  monitors  the  performance  of  service  providers  against  the  benchmark  for various Quality of Service (QoS) parameters laid down by TRAI by way of QoS regulations issued from time to time.

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