The Standing Committee on Communications and IT, chaired by BJP MP Nishikant Dubey, has recommended immediate resolution of bottlenecks in spectrum allocation and BharatNet execution on grounds that the mixed spending patterns in key telecom projects indicate project implementation delays, procurement inefficiencies, administrative bottlenecks, and inadequate absorption capacity in critical areas such as BharatNet and telecom R&D.
“The slow pace of fund utilisation in BharatNet (48 per cent) highlights delays in project implementation, which directly affects last-mile connectivity in rural areas. The Committee recommends that the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) establish a quarterly monitoring mechanism to track BharatNet’s progress, ensuring timely approvals, faster clearance of right of way (RoW) permissions, and streamlined coordination with State governments,” it said in the latest report on Demands for Grants (DFG) for 2025-26.
Additionally, the Committee has urged the DoT to explore public-private partnerships and innovative funding models to accelerate infrastructure deployment.
Digital connectivity
“The Committee is of the considered view that addressing the bottlenecks would definitely enhance BharatNet’s execution efficiency and ensure the timely realisation of India’s digital connectivity goals,” it said.
According to the detailed DFG laid by DoT, the Committee noted that there have been significant variations in both revenue and capital expenditure for FY 2021-22 to 2025-26. The revenue section reveals that the actuals peaked to ₹66,280.44 crore in 2022-23 before falling to ₹33,067.19 crore in 2023-24.
The actuals for the year 2024-25 up to December was ₹26,864.48 crore, while the revised estimates (RE) were ₹57,169.79 crore, suggesting that there may be a shortfall in achieving the targets for 2024-25. The projected revenue for 2025-26 as per the budget estimate (BE) is ₹35,851.50 crore.
“On the capital expenditure front, there has been a steep rise from ₹6,397.74 crore in 2021-22 to ₹82,646.52 crore in RE 2024-25. The Committee also noted that the actual spending up to December, 2024, has been ₹7,445.26 crore. Further, the BE capital outlay for 2025-26 is ₹73,784.76 crore. The total financial outlay for both capital and revenue expenditure has been fluctuating from ₹1,39,816.31 crore (RE of 2024-25) to ₹1,09,636.26 crore for 2025-26,” the Committee said.
Therefore, the Committee opined that such fluctuations indicate inconsistencies in implementing the projects that are undertaken with long-term commitment, it added.
