Only 119,000 gram panchayats made service-ready under BharatNet project

The government’s BharatNet programme has been able to make only 119,000 gram panchayats service-ready against a target of 250,000 gram panchayats, missing yet another deadline of March 2019. As per Bharat Broadband Network Limited, 95 per cent of the work under Phase I has been completed. The delay has been attributed to various issues that primarily include right-of-way challenges.