Lok Sabha Question No. 4322 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-03-18
Subject: Digital Connectivity in Rural and Remote Areas
Ministry: COMMUNICATIONS
Asked by: Shri Sanjay Uttamrao Deshmukh

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS

LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4322 TO BE ANSWERED ON 18 TH  MARCH, 2026

## DIGITAL CONNECTIVITY IN RURAL AND REMOTE AREAS

## †4322. SHRI SANJAY UTTAMRAO DESHMUKH:

Will the Minister of COMMUNICATIONS be pleased to state:

(a) whether  the  Government  has  expedited  the  implementation  of  the  BharatNet  project  to enhance digital connectivity in rural and remote areas of the country and if so, the details thereof;

(b) the  details  of  progress  made  under  the  said  project  in  the  Washim-Yavatmal  Lok  Sabha Constituency;

(c) whether priority is being given to the expansion of 5G services, particularly in developing and underserved regions and if so, the details thereof;

(d) whether the Government has taken any new initiatives to promote banking, insurance and ecommerce services in rural areas through the India Post and if so, the details thereof; and

(e) whether any technological reforms have been undertaken to make the spectrum allocation process more transparent and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

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

(a) BharatNet  project  is  being  implemented  in  a  phased  manner  to  provide  broadband connectivity to all Gram Panchayats (GPs). In  BharatNet Phase-I and Phase-II 2,14,921 GPs have been made Service Ready. Further, Government has approved the Amended BharatNet Program (ABP) on through which Optical Fiber Connectivity is to be provided to approximately 2.64 lakh GPs and approximately 3.8 lakh non-GP villages on demand basis across the country.

(b) Out of 1196 GPs of Washim-Yavatmal Lok Sabha Constituency, 1165 GPs have been made Service Ready under the BharatNet project.

(c) 5G services  have  been  rolled  out  in  all  States/UTs  across  the  country  and  presently  it  is available  in  99.9%  of  the  districts  in  the  country.  Government  has  taken  several  initiatives  for expansion of 5G services, which, inter alia, include the following:

- i. Auction of spectrum for 5G mobile services in 2022.
- ii. Financial reforms to rationalize Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR), Bank Guarantees (BGs) and interest rates.
- iii. Removal of Spectrum Usage Charges for spectrum acquired in auction of 2022 and thereafter.
- iv. Simplification  of  procedure  for  SACFA  (Standing  Advisory  Committee  on  Radio Frequency Allocations) clearance.
- v. Launch of GatiShakti Sanchar portal and RoW(Right of Way) Rules to streamline RoW permissions and clearance of installation of telecom infrastructure.

(d) Department of Posts is leveraging its vast network of 1.65 lakh post offices by focusing on facilitating access to vital public services and ensuring inclusivity for all citizens, especially in rural and remote areas. To promote banking, insurance and e-commerce services in rural areas, following initiatives have been taken by Department of Posts:

## (A) Banking Services and insurance services :

- (i) The Post Office Savings Bank (POSB) operates on a Core Banking Solution (CBS) platform. It provides modern digital services, including ATM access, DBT payment, internet banking, mobile banking, NEFT/RTGS, e-Passbook and UPI. These services are  also  fully  available  through  rural  Post  Offices  through  DREAM  (Digital  Rural Enterprise Application for Mobile) app operated via mobile devices given to Branch Postmasters.
- (ii) India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) through the network of Post Offices provides various citizen-centric and financial services including Digital Life Certificate, Child Aadhaar enrolment, mobile number update in Aadhaar and Aadhaar Enabled Payment System (AePS). Financial services include account opening, Aadhaar seeding, cash deposit and withdrawal, remittances (IMPS/NEFT/RTGS/UPI), bill payments, merchant onboarding,  insurance  loan  in  referral  mode  and  payments  for  Department  of  Posts products such as PPF, SSY and PLI.
- (iii) Funds have been allocated to Circles/Regions/Divisions for promoting  awareness of Rural Postal Life Insurance (RPLI) and the incentive structure for the sales force has been revised to enhance the sale of Postal Life Insurance (PLI) and RPLI including in rural  areas.  PLI/RPLI  policyholders  can  pay  premiums  online  through  the customer portal using debit/credit cards, wallets, BHIM/UPI and net banking, through IPPB, and through standing instructions from POSB and bank accounts.

## (B) e-commerce services:

The Department of Posts has taken several initiatives to promote e-commerce services Pan India including rural areas.

- (i) The Department has also introduced an All-India Road Transport Network (RTN) to expedite  the  safe  and  secure  delivery  of  parcels  across  the  country.  At  present,  88 national routes are operational running over 62,000 km per day. The establishment of a dedicated National RTN for parcels is facilitating connectivity to a significant number of  tier-2  and  tier-3  towns,  and  it  is  serving  as  a  crucial  government  infrastructure initiative that extends the advantages of e-commerce to rural areas also.
- (ii) Department  has  entered  into  Memoranda  of  Understanding  (MoUs)  and  is  actively partnering  with  prominent  e-commerce  and  logistics  platforms  such  as  Amazon, Shiprocket, Decathlon, and DTDC for the delivery of their shipments.
- (e) Technological reforms undertaken in spectrum allocation process are as follows:
- i. The  end-to-end  process  for  spectrum  assignment  has  been  digitized  and  made available online through the Saral Sanchar portal.
- ii. Spectrum is  assigned  to  Telecom  Service  Providers  (TSPs)  through  Simultaneous Multiple Round Ascending (SMRA) e-auctions conducted over the internet.
- iii. The  Government  has  also  enabled  spectrum  trading,  sharing  and  liberalization  to facilitate more efficient and optimal utilization of spectrum by TSPs.

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