"Growing consumer needs for bandwidth hungry applications are clear indicators of robust investments in telecom network infrastructure to be built in years to come." KS Rao, COO-Telecom & Power Conductors, Sterlite Technologies Limited

In line with this, the Government of India has approved a scheme for creation of the national optical fiber network (NOFN) for providing broadband connectivity to 250,000 panchayats on October 25, 2011. The project is estimated to involve OFC deployment of approximately 500,000 km and Rs. 20,400 crore (USD 4 billion) in funding. Implementation framework, budget, technology architecture, and other issues related to NOFN are being worked out by the High Level Committee (HLC) constituted by the Department of Telecom (DoT). To move the project forward, an SPV has been incorporated named Bharat Broadband Network Limited (BBNL), which will be the executing agency for the project and will use the capabilities of three prominent telecom PSUs to implement the project. To grant right of way, a draft tripartite MoU (among GOI, the SPV, and the state government) has been sent to state governments and union territories for their concurrence. Universal Service Obligation Fund (DOT), BBNL, BSNL, Rail Tel, Power Grid, and telecom players, USPs, and content providers along with state governments are already working on the pilot trials.

Besides with increase in rural penetration, scarcity of spectrum is likely to increase further and consequently the demand for OFC for backhaul as well as BTS access will be on the rise. Though market consumption over the last two years has been about 5-6 million FKM, Indian fiber manufacturing capacity is on the rise. With four optical fiber manufacturers, India boasts of reaching over 30 million FKM capacities (optical fiber). Capacity for OFC manufacturing in India is approximately 8 lckm. India can domestically meet the upcoming requirements for national optical fiber network and provide high quality evolving products for evolving Indian ICT industry.

In terms of fiber deployments, India lags far behind other major economies of the world even though it has a similar ecosystem of wireless networks and subscribers. This means that the scope for fiber deployment in India is immense. Apart from these macro factors, there are a few other factors that also will lead to increase fiber demand in the next two to three years. So, besides the National Broadband Plan, a large-scale fiber optic network project that has been delayed is the defense network, which was expected to get underway in India. A nationwide backbone for India's defense agencies has been promised to a secure fiber network in exchange for giving up RF spectrum to be auctioned to 3G operators in 2010. The proposal envisages a network to be laid out over 60,000 km to provide connectivity for 129 army, 162 air force, and 33 navy stations.

Further, with the rise of wireless subscribers in the country and the data usage increasing significantly, currently India's network is getting choked at the mobile backhaul level. Today almost 80-90 percent of base terminal stations are connected through microwave, which is not able to support bandwidth explosion. The fiberizing of BTS sites leading to an added fiber demand in the country.

All these developments and growing consumer needs for bandwidth hungry applications are clear indicators of robust investments in telecom network infrastructure to be built in years to come.