Ministry of Communications
Agreement Signed between DBN (Digital Bharat Nidhi) - Department of Telecommunications; Government of Jharkhand; JDICL; BSNL & JCNL for Implementation of Amended BharatNet Program in Jharkhand
₹1,684 Crore Financial Support Approved for Rollout of Amended BharatNet Program in Jharkhand
Amended BharatNet Program in Jharkhand to Cover 4,395 Gram Panchayats and Provide On-Demand Connectivity to 26,777 Villages
Partnership to Strengthen and Upgrade Rural Telecom Infrastructure
across Jharkhand
Posted On:
10 SEP 2026 4:35PM by PIB Delhi
In a significant step towards strengthening digital infrastructure and accelerating broadband connectivity across rural Jharkhand, Digital Bharat Nidhi (DBN) under Department of Telecommunications (DoT) signed an Agreement for implementation of the Amended BharatNet Program (ABP) in the State under the State-led model today at Sanchar Bhawan, New Delhi.
The Agreement was signed between Digital Bharat Nidhi (DBN), DoT; Government of Jharkhand; Jharkhand Digital Infrastructure Corporation Limited (JDICL); Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) and Jharkhand Communication Network Limited (JCNL) for implementation of the Amended BharatNet Program in the State of Jharkhand.
The Agreement signing ceremony was held in the august presence of Shri Shyamal Misra, Administrator, Digital Bharat Nidhi (DBN); Shri Papa Sudhakara Rao, Director (Enterprise Business - EB), Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) and senior officers of DoT & BSNL. The agreement was signed by Shri Dinesh Kumar Garg, DDG (ABP Implementation-I), Department of Telecommunications and Mrs. Pooja Singhal, Secretary, Department of IT & e-Gov, Government of Jharkhand.
The signing of the Agreement marks an important milestone towards expeditious implementation of the Programme and reflects the shared commitment of the Central Government and the Government of Jharkhand towards strengthening rural digital infrastructure, enhancing last-mile connectivity and promoting inclusive digital growth.
The Union Cabinet had approved the Amended BharatNet Program on 4th August 2023 with the objective of upgrading, consolidating and expanding the existing BharatNet network to ensure robust and future-ready broadband connectivity to all Gram Panchayats and villages on demand basis.
Under the Amended BharatNet Program in Jharkhand, the project will be implemented through new SPV namely “Jharkhand Digital Infrastructure Corporation Limited (JDICL)”. The Programme will have a total scope of 4,395 Gram Panchayats, which includes upgradation of 4,387 Gram Panchayats from linear to ring topology to enhance network resilience, and inclusion of 8 newly created Gram Panchayats. In addition, 26,777 villages will be provided connectivity on a demand basis to strengthen last-mile connectivity.
The Government of India has provisioned the financial support of ₹1,684 crore for implementation of the Programme in Jharkhand. The initiative is expected to facilitate more than four lakh rural home fibre connections with subsidy support from the Government of India and significantly enhance delivery of digital services including e-Governance, online education, telemedicine, digital payments and citizen-centric services across rural and remote areas of the state.
The Agreement signed today is expected to accelerate execution of the Programme in Jharkhand and further advance the vision of a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy.
About Digital Bharat Nidhi
Digital Bharat Nidhi (erstwhile USOF) was established under the Indian Telegraph (Amendment) Act, 2003 w.e.f. 01.04.2002. As per ‘The Telecommunications Act, 2023’ the Universal Service Obligation Fund, has become the Digital Bharat Nidhi (DBN). The DBN has mandate to support universal service through promoting access and delivery of telecommunication service in underserved rural, remote and urban areas. It is an attached office of the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), Ministry of Communications.
In order to achieve objectives of DBN, it covers various schemes and projects including BharatNet, 4G Saturation Project, Provision of Mobile Service in uncovered areas of Aspirational Districts, Mobile Services in Left Wing Extremist Areas, Mobile Services in Himalayan and Border areas, Mobile Services in Islands and Mobile Services in North Eastern Areas.
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NJ/AR
(Release ID: 2308726)
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