Latest news with #DBN
Time of India
23-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Over 90% of border habitations in NE get mobile network: Centre
1 2 Guwahati: Among the 5,200 villages and habitations situated in the northeastern border regions, 4,696 now have access to mobile network, the Centre informed the Lok Sabha on Wednesday. This accounts for mobile connectivity achieved in over 90 per cent of the remote border villages and habitations of the northeast. Replying to a question by Lok Sabha MP Indra Hang Subba, Union minister of state for communications and rural development Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar told the House that all 1,237 border villages and habitations in Assam have achieved complete mobile connectivity. In Sikkim, too, all 68 border villages and habitations have come under mobile network. However, Arunachal Pradesh, characterised by its challenging topography, continues to face connectivity issues, with 337 out of 1,502 border villages and habitations still without mobile coverage. The govt allocated Rs 1,775.53 crore through various Digital Bharat Nidhi (DBN) schemes between FY 2020-21 and FY 2024-25 to enhance mobile network infrastructure in the remote northeastern areas. The minister replied that mobile coverage for any uncovered inhabited villages is provided by the Telecom Service Providers (TSPs) based on techno-commercial viability. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Beyond Text Generation: An AI Tool That Helps You Write Better Grammarly Install Now Undo "The Centre, through funding from Digital Bharat Nidhi, is implementing various schemes for the expansion of telecom connectivity through the installation of mobile towers in the rural, remote, and border areas of the country," Sekhar said. Regarding Sikkim particularly, he said as of June, 11 sites were commissioned in Sikkim under DBN-funded mobile schemes, providing mobile coverage to 13 villages, including border areas. Statistics revealed that Arunachal Pradesh has the highest number of border villages and habitations (1,502), of which 1,165 have got mobile coverage. Meghalaya has the second highest number of border villages and habitations (1,272), of which 1,238 have mobile coverage. While 365 of Mizoram's 378 border villages and habitations got mobile coverage, the minister said, adding 194 of Manipur's 263 border villages and habitations got mobile coverage so far. In Nagaland, 96 out of 135, in Sikkim, all 68, and in Tripura, 333 of the 345 border villages and habitations have mobile coverage.
Time of India
23-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Draft telecom policy puts focus on jobs, accessibility
New Delhi: The latest National Telecom Policy (NTP-25) has listed down creating a million jobs and covering the entire population through 4G services as among its key goals to be reached by 2030. Other NTP goals are covering 90% of the population with 5G, increasing fiberisation of towers to 80%, having accessible devices for all, deploying 1 million public WiFi hotspots , and reaching fixed broadband services to 100 million households. Explore courses from Top Institutes in Please select course: Select a Course Category Project Management Cybersecurity Digital Marketing others CXO Data Science Technology Others PGDM Product Management Operations Management Leadership Management Design Thinking Artificial Intelligence Data Science Healthcare MCA Degree Finance MBA healthcare Public Policy Data Analytics Skills you'll gain: Portfolio Management Project Planning & Risk Analysis Strategic Project/Portfolio Selection Adaptive & Agile Project Management Duration: 6 Months IIT Delhi Certificate Programme in Project Management Starts on May 30, 2024 Get Details Skills you'll gain: Project Planning & Governance Agile Software Development Practices Project Management Tools & Software Techniques Scrum Framework Duration: 12 Weeks Indian School of Business Certificate Programme in IT Project Management Starts on Jun 20, 2024 Get Details A draft of the policy, which has laid out goals and targets to be achieved in the next five years, has been put up for public consultation. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Indonesia: New Container Houses (Prices May Surprise You) Container House | Search ads Search Now Undo As per the draft, the policy is anchored in six strategic missions with clearly defined goals and targeted strategies. The aim is to deliver affordable, high-quality connectivity to every citizen, drive self-reliant manufacturing and exports of telecom equipment, establish robust framework for cyber security, create a simplified regulatory environment etc. "With this policy, India aims to emerge not only as a leading consumer of digital technologies, but also as a trusted global provider of telecom products, services, and solutions," the preamble of the draft policy said. Live Events The NTP-25 aims to accomplish 10 key objectives by 2030 which include having universal and meaningful connectivity for all, achieve '1 lakh crore ($12 billion) annual investment in telecom infrastructure, double the export of telecom products and services, create 1 million new jobs in telecom sector and another 1 million workers to be reskilled among others. To expand the telecommunication network, it has been proposed to devise Digital Bharat Nidhi (DBN) schemes to expand mobile networks in underserved rural, remote, and urban areas and also introduce incentive schemes for proliferation of fixed line broadband. The policy proposes to promote advanced technologies and satellite integration . It calls for setting up satcom use case labs for socio-economic applications and enabling ground station as a service (GSaaS) from India.
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Business Standard
07-07-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
Telcos raise concern over Digital Bharat Nidhi fund diversion to R&D
India's telecom operators have raised objection to the government's move to divert a portion of the Digital Bharat Nidhi (DBN) towards research and development (R&D) activities, arguing that it deviates from the fund's original mandate and lack of transparency in allocation. In a letter addressed to Telecom Secretary Neeraj Mittal, as seen by The Economic Times, operators flagged concerns over using DBN resources, which are funded primarily through levies on telecom and internet service providers, for R&D initiatives undertaken by public sector entities and academic institutions, including the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs). What is the Digital Bharat Nidhi? The Digital Bharat Nidhi (DBN), formerly known as the Universal Service Obligation Fund, is a government-administered pool aimed at financing telecom infrastructure in underserved rural and remote areas. The fund is maintained through a 5 per cent levy on adjusted gross revenue (AGR) from telecom and internet service providers (ISPs). As of December 2023, the DBN corpus stood at ₹86,356 crore. OTT disproportionately gain from R&D: Telcos Telecom operators have raised concerns over the government's move to allocate 5 per cent of the DBN corpus to research and development (R&D). The argument of the telecom companies is that the contributor base remains limited to telcos and ISPs, while over-the-top (OTT) platforms, key beneficiaries of broadband expansion, are excluded from making contributions. The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), representing the major telecom players, argued that while R&D is valuable, it falls outside the scope of DBN's original objectives. They highlighted that private telecom firms are being required to support activities that do not necessarily yield direct benefits to them. Telecom cos criticise lack of transparency Operators also criticised the non-transparent allocation process, pointing out that most of the DBN's R&D funds have gone to a handful of institutions like the IITs without open or competitive bidding. They stressed that these premier institutions make up a small fraction of India's engineering education ecosystem and already receive significant public funding, reportedly around ₹8,000 crore in FY22. In their letter, telcos urged the government to ensure equitable access to R&D funding across a broader range of qualified institutions, rather than focusing funding on a select few. They also demanded that intellectual property generated through DBN-funded research be shared transparently with contributing telecom firms and not retained as proprietary assets by the research bodies. They also called for the selection of implementing agencies to be governed strictly under the DBN Rules, 2024, and insisted on industry representation in the decision-making process.
Time of India
06-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Telcos raise concerns over Digital Bharat Nidhi use
New Delhi: Telecom operators have opposed the use of Digital Bharat Nidhi (DBN) funds for research and development (R&D) purposes, particularly by public sector units and select institutions like the Indian Institutes of Technology ( IITs ), saying the move goes against the reasons why the corpus was created in the first place. In a letter to telecom secretary Neeraj Mittal, telcos stressed that the foundational purpose of DBN, earlier called Universal Service Obligation Fund , was to support deployment of telecom networks in uncovered rural and remote areas. It was meant to relieve telcos and internet service providers (ISPs) of their individual obligations to roll out services in unviable regions. To make it happen, telcos and ISPs contribute 5% of their adjusted gross revenue to the DBN. As of December last year, the DBN had a fund balance of ₹86,356 crore. Now 5% of DBN is earmarked for R&D but the contributors remain the same and over the top (OTT) platforms, which are major beneficiaries of broadband proliferation, don't have to contribute. The telcos, through Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), wrote to the government that while R&D was strategically important, it traditionally fell within the domain of academic and research institutions and did not directly align with the DBN's foundational purpose. "As a result, TSPs/ISPs are compelled to contribute significantly towards activities that may not offer them any direct or tangible benefit," the COAI said in the letter. Live Events The telcos further stressed that allocation of funds to public sector units on nominating terms effectively results in cross-subsidy from private players to them. Besides, the majority of DBN allocations for R&D have been directed to a few institutions like IITs, without a transparent selection mechanism like open bidding or competitive bidding. "While IITs are esteemed institutions, they represent less than 0.4% of the engineering colleges in India. Moreover, institutions such as the IITs already receive substantial government funding, approximately ₹8,000 crore annually, as of FY22," the letter said. The telcos want that DBN allocations should be done in a manner to ensure equal allocation to all the technical, R&D and engineering institutions which are equally worthy, and are capable of good quality research and development work. Further, the intellectual property rights and products developed using DBN-funded R&D must be made accessible to contributing telcos and ISPs in a transparent manner. "These outputs should not be treated as private assets by the R&D institutions or individual researchers," the letter said. It added that the selection of implementing agencies for R&D funding must adhere to the process as per the DBN Rules, 2024 and telcos, who are the major contributors towards the fund, should be involved in the selection process.
Time of India
30-06-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Strong domestic innovation boosting India's 6G ambition: Neeraj Mittal
The Centre is working on multiple initiatives to accelerate homegrown innovation in a bid to facilitate India's contribution to next generation (6G) technology. In an interaction with ETTelecom's Muntazir Abbas, Neeraj Mittal, Secretary, Department of Telecommunications (DoT), and Chairman, Digital Communications Commission (DCC) talks on sectoral health, Digital Bharat Nidhi (DBN) levy, technology development fund, 6G preparedness, satellite communications (satcom), terahertz spectrum band, and Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) 4G network. Edited excerpts. Is there any new relief package in the works for the telecom sector? There is no proposal at present. Industry has been demanding a cut in Digital Bharat Nidhi (DBN) levy for a long time. Is DoT considering any reduction? There is no proposal of reduction. Do you think a 3+1 telco market is healthy enough for a country like India? India has large numbers of telecom licensees having authorisation to offer various telecom services. Market dynamics determine equilibrium. How has been the progress of Telecom Technology Development Fund (TTDF) so far? How much disbursement has been made till date? A total of 120 proposals covering areas such as 5G development under the 'India 5G Stack', 6G and beyond technology development, Internet of Things (IoT) and machine-to-machine (M2M) development, and other telecom technologies are being funded under the Telecom Technology Development Fund (TTDF) scheme, amounting to ₹500 crore. These also include 100 proposals aimed at advancing the development of 6G technologies and ensuring robust, efficient, and sustainable connectivity solutions. As of now about ₹180 crores have been disbursed. India's 6G preparedness seems to be slow-paced as against the ambition of at least 10% of the global patents by 2030. What steps are you taking to fast-forward the progress? India is gearing up for 6G by 2030 with a strong push for domestic innovation, guided by the Bharat 6G Vision . Building on its 5G research foundation, the country has launched over 100 research and development (R&D) projects and set up indigenous test beds and labs. Key events like the TTDF Symposium 2025 and the upcoming 3GPP RAN meeting in Bengaluru underscore India's growing role in shaping global telecom standards. Do you think terrestrial and non-terrestrial networks will be complementary to each other? Terrestrial networks offer dense, high-speed coverage, while non-terrestrial networks like satellites extend reach to remote and underserved areas. Together, they enable seamless, global connectivity across land, air, and sea. Share an update on terahertz band (95 GHz-3THz) and terahertz experimental authorisation (THEA), as proposed by Trai, to promote R&D and trials? TRAI recommendations on Terahertz band and Terahertz Experimental Authorisation, are under the Department of Telecommunications' consideration. What are the top 2-3 focus areas for BSNL in the current fiscal? What steps are you taking to sustain profitability? The focus areas of BSNL include rollout of indigenous 4G network, improving quality of service, improving customer service, and eventually make the company profitable. Share an update on Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL) assets monetisation exercise? Total earnings generated through asset monetization of BSNL and MTNL, is ₹12,984 crores since the approval of 2019 revival plan, from sale and rental. By when will the BharatNet 3 program be completed? The amended BharatNet project is for ten years.
