Khaunte unveils GBBN 2.0 plans, aims for fiber-to-home by 2024

Panaji: With the Goa BroadBand Network (GBBN) well past its life cycle and with United Telecoms Ltd (UTL) unable to meet the service level agreements for the statewide network, the department for information and technology has kickstarted the process to find a replacement. The IT department has issued an Expression of Interest (EOI) to lay new optic fibre cables across the state and subsequently create a new statewide area network (SWAN) which will link government departments, village panchayats, schools and at a later stage, even homes.
Speaking to TOI, IT minister Rohan Khaunte said that he has an ambitious plan to roll out fibre to home in the coming two to three years, a GBBN 2.0. Unlike the existing Build Own Operate (BOO) model, the IT department has opted for a Build Own Operate Transfer (BOOT) model for the public private partnership initiative.
“This optic fiber will ensure that we are able to connect every house with a fiber connection, just like an electricity or water connection. We are giving this as a basic amenity so it is an ambitious plan,” said Khaunte. “My plan is to have it up and running in most talukas by 2024.”
Building a new state-owned OFC network in Goa with significantly higher bandwidth that links 228 villages and 22 government offices is estimated to cost around Rs 740 crore.
With the GBBN project well past its 10 year life cycle, the state government had planned to implement the Centre’s Bharat Broadband Network Ltd (BharatNet) in Goa to connect the village panchayats and over 200 government offices. The IT department had sought Rs 327.7 crore from the Centre’s department of telecommunications for BharatNet and subsequently moved a second proposal for funding with state support.
Khaunte expects a 24-month time frame to lay new optic fibre cables in the state and, till then, the government has decided to extend the contract with United Telecoms Limited (UTL). UTL is the private agency that bagged the contract to implement GBBN in 2009.
In 201, the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) said that the government incurred a loss of around Rs 22.62 crore because of the implementation of GBBN, through UTL. Delay in completion of the project by UTL led to an additional expenditure of Rs 82 crore.
The CAG also raised a red flag over the performance of the GBBN, pointing out flaws in the GBBN contract agreement.
The state government had appointed PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) to analyse the exit management of GBBN and a decision was taken to exit the contract with UTL as the GBBN equipment was at the “end of life, end of warranty” and in need of complete replacement.
“The last thing (GBBN) was done was on the BOO basis. Now we have to look at build, own, operate, transfer. The government has to invest in the fiber from day one and ensure that we make it a continuous revenue model. This allows us to get revenue rather than missing out,” said Khaunte.