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India: 175 Million Broadband Connections by 2014
Bangalore: Department of Information Technology is targeting on 175 million broadband connections by 2014, which is expected to add an additional $87 billion to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of India.
Government has set aside Rs 20,000 crore to implement national broadband plan which will extend the optical fibre networks to all parts of the country.
With the addition of 175 million broadband connections, the number of internet users is expected to reach 700 million. Currently India has over 100 million internet users while the number of Broadband users is just over 13 million.
According to the study by Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER), increase in internet penetration will increase the overall GDP. Parthasarathi, Director of ICRIER said, "Indian states with higher Internet penetration can be expected to grow much faster, and by 1.08 per cent for every 10 per cent increase in the number of Internet subscribers.” On comparison, a 10 percent increase in mobile penetration will increase GDP by 1.5 percent.
Government has previously failed in reaching its targets under the national broadband plan of 2004. The study also recommends setting up broadband networks to connect schools, hospitals (especially rural centres) and government agencies, for achieving better economic growth.