Jio, Airtel allotted Rs 3,683 crore project for 4G roll-out in uncovered villages

The government has allotted Rs 3,683 crore for a scheme to provide 4G mobile connectivity to uncovered villages in aspirational districts, informed an official source.

According to the source, Bharti Airtel will lay out 1,083 mobile towers in Jharkhand and Maharashtra at a cost of Rs 847.95 crore, while Reliance Jio will lay out 3,696 towers at a cost of Rs 2,836 crore. The businesses were assigned to the project in May.

“The Cabinet had approved a scheme to provide 4G coverage to uncovered villages in five states’ aspirational districts last year,” informed the source. According to him, Airtel and Jio have been allowed 18 months to carry out 4G services in the specified areas.

The initiative aims to bring 4G-based mobile services to 7,827 uncovered villages in 44 aspirational districts across five states: Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, and Odhisha, at a cost of Rs 6,466 crore, including operational expenses, over a five-year period.

The Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) will fund the project, which is expected to be finished by November 2023.