BharatNet
Topic: Transport and Communication in India · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
BharatNet is a programme to take optical-fibre broadband to about 2.5 lakh gram panchayats (village councils) across India. Optical fibre is thin glass cable that carries internet data as light, which makes it very fast. Bharat Broadband Network Ltd runs the programme. Amended BharatNet (2023) goes further, from the panchayat office to villages and homes (verify current). It matters because a digital divide still exists, meaning some people have less internet access than others because of their region, their gender or the land they live on.
Example
Laying fibre to a gram panchayat in the hills of Arunachal Pradesh is much harder than on the flat Ganga plains. Mountains, forests and rivers slow the work. This is why the digital divide by terrain is still a problem.
Don't confuse with
- Digital India: this is the wider 2015 umbrella programme. BharatNet is one piece of its digital infrastructure.