The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) recently scrapped a Rs 1,950 crore tender for the BharatNet project in Tamil Nadu. The following article is an effort to elaborate on the DPIIT, its functioning, the BharatNet project, and their relevance.
About DPIIT
The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade operates under the aegis of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. Established in 1995, it underwent reconstitution in 2000 by merging with the Department of Industrial Development. In February 2019, it was renamed from the previous title, the Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP).
Functioning of DPIIT
After the liberalisation of the Indian economy that began in July 1991, the role of this Department shifted from regulatory and administrative functions to facilitating investment, technology flows, and industrial development in a liberalised environment.
The BharatNet Mission
BharatNet is implemented by Bharat Broadband Network Ltd. (BBNL), a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) established under the Companies Act, 1956 with an authorized capital of Rs 1,000 crore. Initially operating under the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, it was later bifurcated into the Ministry of Communications and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology in July 2016. Presently, the Department of Telecommunication under the Ministry of Communications implements it.
National Optical Fibre Network
The National Optical Fibre Network (NOFN) was launched in October 2011 and was renamed as the Bharat Net Project in 2015. The NOFN aimed to create an information superhighway through robust middle-mile infrastructure for reaching broadband connectivity to Gram Panchayats.
The National Broadband Mission
The Ministry of Communications launched the National Broadband Mission to facilitate universal and equitable access to broadband services across the country, especially rural and remote areas. Its goal is to deliver e-governance, e-health, e-education, e-banking, Internet, and other services to rural India.
Connecting Gram Panchayats
Under BharatNet, it is aimed to connect all the 2,50,000 Gram panchayats in the country and provide them with 100 Mbps connectivity. Existing unused fibres (dark fibres) of public sector undertakings (PSUs) are used and incremental fibre is laid to connect to Gram Panchayats.
Access and Funding
Non-discriminatory access to the NOFN is provided to all service providers including Telecom Service Providers (TSPs), Cable TV operators, and content providers. The project is being funded by the Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF), set up for improving telecom services in rural areas.
Project Implementation
BharatNet is a Centre-State collaborative project, with states contributing free rights of way for establishing the Optical Fibre Network. It has a three-phase implementation plan with each phase targeting a different aspect of the project.
Dark Fibre
‘Dark fibre’ refers to the unused optical fibre that are laid but not currently being used in fibre-optic communications. Companies often lay extra optical fibres to avoid cost repetition when more bandwidth is needed. Also known as unlit fibre, dark cable refers to one through which light pulses are not being transmitted.
