Visakhapatnam: The Andhra Pradesh government has urged the Centre to facilitate supply of 35 lakh Customer Premises Equipment (CPE) boxes for optimal utilisation of the BharatNet infrastructure in the state by improving digital connectivity.
AP Infrastructure and Investment Department Secretary S Suresh Kumar made a detailed presentation to Union Minister of State for Panchayat Raj and Communications Dr Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar and Union Telecommunications Department Secretary Dr Neeraj Mittal at a high-level meeting in New Delhi, on the progress of the BharatNet project.
APSFL Managing Director K Dinesh Kumar also attended the meeting. Suresh Kumar requested the Centre to reimburse Rs 635 crore spent on IP-Multi Protocol Label Switching technology for BharatNet Phase-II in the State. He also requested the Centre to clear the pending payment towards capital expenditure for the BharatNet Phase-II.
“The AP State Fibernet Limited has been dedicated in providing affordable, high-speed broadband connectivity across the State, particularly focusing on rural and underserved regions. Since its inception, APSFL has provided connections to over 9.7 lakh households, of which about 5 lakh connections are now active. In addition, 6,200 schools, 1,978 health centres, 11,254 Gram Panchayats, 5,800 farmers’ support centres, 193 telecom towers, and 9,104 government institutions are also connected by APSFL,” Suresh Kumar elaborated.
Though in 2020 the APSFL’s subscriber base peaked to 9.7 lakh connections, it could not be sustained or expanded due to supply constraints.
“To fully utilise both the APSFL Phase-I network and BharatNet Phase-II infrastructure, there is an urgent need for 35 lakh Customer Premises Equipment (CPE) boxes. APSFL is uniquely positioned to immediately deploy these boxes, thereby delivering swift and impactful results for optimal utilisation of BharatNet. This model would become a torch-bearer for other States to follow, ensuring rapid expansion of digital connectivity across the nation,” Suresh Kumar explained.
He said the APSFL was proactive in adopting IP-Multi Protocol Label Switching (IP-MPLS) technology at its own cost during the implementation of BharatNet Phase II.
“As the Central government is now funding IP-MPLS deployment under the amended BharatNet Program for other States under BharatNet Phase-III, the APSFL requests reimbursement of Rs 635 crore for pioneering this active technology investment in 2017, ensuring equity among all States and incentivising early adoption,” the I&I Secretary added.
BBNL under CPSU model has implemented BharatNet Phase-l (Mandal to GP) in 57 mandals and 1692 grama panchayats in the erstwhile undivided districts of Visakhapatnam and Chittoor. Suresh Kumar requested the Centre to facilitate handing over the existing BharatNet Phase-1 network in erstwhile districts of Visakhapatnam and Chittoor with all its assets to APSFL for upgradation and maintenance. He also sought necessary budgetary support for this.