*175 new mobile towers commissioned to fill gaps
Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Aug 6: Despite recent improvements in digital infrastructure, mobile and internet services in remote areas of Ladakh continue to face severe network congestion, particularly in locations such as Neyraks village along the 144 RCC Nimmu-Padam-Darcha (NPD) road. This issue has arisen due to the increasing population, presence of labour settlements, GREF camps and rising vehicular movement in the area.
The matter was brought to the attention of the Government in the Lok Sabha by Member Parliament Mohmad Haneefa, who questioned the Ministry of Communications on the deteriorating service quality and the steps being taken to improve connectivity in these strategically significant and remote parts of Ladakh.
Responding to the query, Minister of State for Communications and Rural Development, Dr Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar, stated that as per the Performance Monitoring Report published by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) for June 2025, all telecom service providers operating in the Jammu & Kashmir License Service Area, which includes Ladakh, have reportedly met the prescribed quality of service benchmarks.
However, to address the connectivity challenges in remote, hilly, tribal, border, and rural regions, including Ladakh, the Government has undertaken multiple initiatives under the Digital Bharat Nidhi (DBN), previously known as the Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF). Under the BharatNet project, all 193 Gram Panchayats in Ladakh have been made service-ready using satellite-based broadband connectivity.
Furthermore, the Amended BharatNet Programme (ABP) aims to upgrade the existing network under BharatNet Phase-I and Phase-II and to create new infrastructure in the remaining 42,000 Gram Panchayats across the country. Additionally, connectivity for around 3.8 lakh non-GP villages will be provided on a demand basis from their respective Gram Panchayats.
To boost mobile network coverage, the Government has also commissioned 175 mobile towers across uncovered, remote, and rural villages in Ladakh. These collective efforts are intended to provide enhanced, high-bandwidth, and uninterrupted digital connectivity to support the growing demands of tourists, students, and essential services in the region.
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