Telecom network for Naxal-hit areas awaits cabinet nod

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has approved the setting up of mobile towers in the Naxal-affected areas and the cabinet would take a final call on it, Communications Minister Kapil Sibal said here Friday.

"These mobile towers in the Naxal areas will help us provide to people who are residing over there with better security," Sibal said while launching 'e-Gov Appstore' here.

The government launched e-Gov AppStore aiming it to be national-level repository of applications, components, web services, which can be used by various governmnet agencies or departments at the centre and in the states. Currently, there are 20 applications, eight components and one web service.

Meanwhile, it is learnt from sources that the cabinet approval for mobile towers may happen soon.

There are around 2,199 sites located in the Left-wing extremism (LWE) areas, where telecommunication connectivity needs to be established.

The DoT and the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) have been pushing for improving mobile services in six Naxal-affected states in the country covering 80 districts.

The Naxal-affected districts, where there is a communication hurdle, are in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.