According to Ashwini Vaishnaw, Union Minister of Communications, Electronics and Information Technology and Railways, 3,734 villages in Rajasthan are still deprived of 4G connectivity. In a reply to the Lok Sabha, the minister stated that 42,343 out of 46,077 villages in Rajasthan are covered with 4G network.
Vaishnaw added that as per data received from telecom service providers (TSPs), the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) field unit and state governments, as of March 2022, around 598,951 out of 644,131 villages (93 per cent) have 4G mobile network and 45,180 villages do not have 4G mobile coverage.
Further, the reply stated that government and TSPs provide telecom connectivity in the country in a phased manner. The government through funding from Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) is implementing various schemes for providing mobile network coverage in all uncovered villages of the country.
As per the minister’s reply, there is a provision of 4G mobile connectivity in 7,287 aspirational district villages in Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra and Odisha, and a provision of 4G mobile connectivity in 502 uncovered villages of aspirational districts in four states – Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.
