The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) plans to invite bids from all operators to roll out networks across the country’s naxal-affected territories.

Phase I of the rollout will target districts identified by the Ministry of Home Affairs in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal and Orissa. These areas have been accorded highest priority.

Since the contracts will now be granted through the bidding route, the L1 bidder will be eligible for subsidy payments from the Universal Services Obligation (USO) Fund. However, such subsidy payments will be linked to the mobile network architecture specified by the USO Fund administrator.

As these areas are thinly populated, the USO Fund has asked operators to optimise network rollout costs so as to minimise the subsidy outflow.

Currently, 37,185 villages do not have any telecom infrastructure.

Besides, it is believed that operators will be asked to deploy low-cost renewable energy resources, which could be a mix of solar, wind or hybrid technologies to provide mobile coverage in these zones.