Wired for BharatNet: Centre to plug the broadband gap in Uttar Pradesh

Uttar Pradesh (UP), the most populous and politically crucial state in the country, has emerged as the centrepiece of the roll-out of two key schemes of the Narendra Modi government — the BharatNet project and the Saubhagya scheme.

The BharatNet project aims to connect 250,000 gram panchayats with broadband by March 2019. In the first phase, 100,000 gram panchayats will be connected by December this year, of which about 25 per cent are in UP alone.

The Saubhagya (Sahaj Bijli Ghar Yojana) scheme, which the Prime Minister (PM) launched on the occasion of the birth anniversary of Deendayal Upadhyaya on