According to industry expert Prashant Singhal, India will require an investment of Rs 4.2 lakh crore by 2030 to connect 24 crore households in the country with broadband services. Speaking at the Broadband India Forum conference, Singhal, who is the Telecom Sector Leader for Emerging Markets and a Partner in a member firm of EY Global, highlighted that currently, only 4 crore households in India are connected with broadband.
Singhal emphasized that to achieve the goal of connecting 24 crore households with high-speed broadband service, India needs to invest in digital connectivity infrastructure across various modes, including fiber, mobile towers, satellite broadband, WiFi, and data centers. He provided a breakdown of the required investments, indicating that fiber deployment would need investments ranging from Rs 2.7-3 lakh crore, passive infrastructure Rs 90,000-96,000 crore, WiFi and in-building solutions Rs 6,600-Rs 9,000 crore, data centers Rs 9,700-Rs 14,100 crore, and satellite broadband services Rs 26,000-29,000 crore.
Singhal suggested leveraging USOF (universal services obligation fund) and allowing the use of CSR (corporate social responsibility) funds for building the necessary infrastructure. He also proposed voluntary contributions from high ARPU (average revenue per user) paying customers to bridge the digital divide.
Singhal highlighted the growth potential in India, citing an expected increase in 5G subscribers from 16 crore to 80 crore by 2030 and a rise in monthly data consumption from 24 GB to 75 GB per month. He stressed the need for India to increase its broadband penetration from the current 13% to 80%, comparing it with top economies like the US, China, Japan, and Germany, which have significantly higher broadband penetration rates.
BIF President TV Ramachandran echoed Singhal’s sentiments, emphasizing the urgency to accelerate fixed broadband deployment to keep pace with the escalating data consumption. Ramachandran advocated for a minimum 20% annual growth rate in fixed broadband subscriptions over the next six years to achieve significant fiber connections.
