CentralDigital InfrastructureUnder ConstructionDelayed
BharatNet
A national rural broadband programme to connect gram panchayats and villages through optical fibre and related digital infrastructure.
Estimated cost
₹1,39,579 cr
Reported spend
Not available
Announced
25 Oct 2011
Last verified
1 May 2026
Schedule check
Compared with the first announced target
BharatNet has been restructured and extended multiple times beyond the original NOFN/BharatNet target, so it is tracked as delayed.
First target
Dec 2016
Current target
Dec 2027
Revised target
Not listed
Public relevance
Gram panchayats, rural households, schools, health centres, local businesses and digital public service users
Timeline
3 events
25 Oct 2011
NOFN approved
The National Optical Fibre Network was approved as the predecessor to BharatNet.
1 Apr 2015
Recast as BharatNet
The programme was renamed/restructured as BharatNet.
4 Aug 2023
Amended programme approved
Cabinet approved an amended BharatNet programme with a larger outlay.
Risk notes
- Long-running rollout delays
- Last-mile adoption and maintenance challenges
- State and implementing-agency coordination risk
Official/public sources
Use these links to inspect the underlying public sources for project details and updates.