Advertisement
What really powers the cloud? Behind every Google search, A...
A lot of what defines a home isn’t visible at handover. I...
Private equity has played a significant role in shaping Indi...
Luxury real estate is one of the most talked-about segments ...
Airports play a much bigger role than just enabling travel -...
A parliamentary panel has flagged major planning, execution and financial sustainability shortcomings in BSNL’s INR 942.34 crore project to establish 25,000 Wi-Fi hotspots at rural telephone exchanges. The Committee on Public Undertakings noted that BSNL commissioned 24,333 hotspots, or 97.3% of the target, but earned only INR 3.09 lakh against a projected INR 75 crore revenue target. The report also highlighted delays, subsidy losses, liquidated damages and downtime penalties, recommending stronger monitoring, accountability and performance-linked funding for future telecom infrastructure projects.
A parliamentary panel has raised concerns over the implementation and financial performance of BSNL’s 25,000 Wi-Fi hotspot project, finding significant shortcomings in planning, execution, maintenance and revenue generation. The Committee on Public Undertakings examined the project under its Fourteenth Report, based on the C&AG’s audit observations, and concluded that the INR 942.34 crore project had fallen short on financial efficiency and service outcomes despite substantial utilisation of funds.
The project, funded through the Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF), was intended to improve digital connectivity in rural areas by establishing Wi-Fi hotspots at BSNL rural telephone exchanges. However, the committee found that the sites were selected without adequate feasibility assessment, resulting in installations at locations considered commercially or operationally unviable. It said this reflected weaknesses in planning by BSNL and regulatory scrutiny by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT).
Implementation also suffered substantial delays. BSNL had originally been required to establish the 25,000 hotspots within six months, but repeated extensions were required until 2022. Only 24,333 hotspots were ultimately commissioned. The committee noted that although equipment had been procured in advance, only 27 hotspots were installed at an early stage and no liquidated damages were imposed at that point.
The delays also resulted in a loss of INR 1.15 crore in OPEX subsidy, while BSNL incurred INR 81.84 lakh in liquidated damages because of delays of up to 790 days in commissioning. The panel attributed these outcomes to weaknesses in procurement, planning and oversight and recommended stronger vendor accountability and a centralised digital procurement and monitoring mechanism.
Maintenance performance emerged as another concern. BSNL paid INR 60.71 crore in downtime penalties after failing to maintain the prescribed 99.99% uptime, despite spending INR 33.08 crore on annual maintenance contracts. The committee recommended centralised monitoring, stronger service-level agreements, improved power backup arrangements and greater oversight of maintenance vendors.
The project's revenue performance was particularly weak. According to the committee, BSNL generated only INR 3.09 lakh against a revenue target of INR 75 crore. The panel noted that free Wi-Fi services continued beyond the permitted trial period without DoT approval, undermining the commercial sustainability of the scheme. It recommended greater adherence to paid usage models and market-oriented revenue strategies, including monetisation through BharatNet and bundled services.
The committee also criticised the absence of a timely independent impact assessment, saying reliance on internal studies limited objective evaluation of the scheme. It recommended mandatory third-party assessments within six to 12 months for similar projects and linking fund disbursement to measurable outcomes.
While 97.3% of the targeted hotspots were commissioned, the panel said the project did not deliver adequate financial efficiency or performance standards. It recommended performance-linked funding, third-party verification and outcome-based reporting for future digital infrastructure programmes.
Source- Digital Sansad
Advertisement
Facebook
Whatsapp
