BSNL working on Modi's 'Digital India' project in UP

Will connect 37,455 village panchayats under the ongoing National Optical Fibre Network

Bharat Sanchal Nigam Limited (BSNL) has been mandated to connect 37,455 village panchayats in Uttar Pradesh (East) Circle under the ongoing National Optical Fibre Network (NOFN).

NOFN is a project to provide broadband connectivity on optical fibre to 2,50,000 village panchayats across India for the implementation of various services, such as e-health, e-education and e-governance etc.

The Network thus forms the core of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ambitious 'Digital India' project.

In UP (E), the project spans 582 blocks spread over 48 districts. In first phase, the work is being carried out in 227 blocks and 14,474 village panchayats in the Circle, BSNL chief general manager UP (E) H R Shukla said here.

Against the targeted 5,619 village panchayats to be covered by March 2015, the work had already been completed in 600 villages, he informed.

Currently, the work is underway in 36 blocks of Lucknow, Gorakhpur, Hamirpur, Mahoba, Banda, Orai, Barabanki, Basti, Hardoi, Lalitpur, Faizabad, Kanpur, Mau, Mirzapur, Rae Bareli, Pratapgarh, Sitapur, Unnao and Varanasi districts.

All service providers like Telecom Service Providers (TSPs), ISPs, cable TV operators etc would be given non-discriminatory access to the NOFN for launching various services in rural areas.

BSNL, RailTel and Power Grid have been authorised by the Centre to use the existing optical fibre network and lay incremental fibres to connect these villages. The project in UP (E) area has been given to BSNL.

The accessibility of 26 e-services being offered through the state portal is expected to improve after implementation of NOFN Project.

The 26 services, include application for caste certificate, income certificate, domicile cxertificate, birth certificate, death certificate, old age pension, family benefit scheme, etc.