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No GPON review for broadband connectivity: Garg

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V&D Bureau
New Update

Terming gigabit passive optical network (GPON) to provide broadband connectivity as ‘power efficient’, telecom secretary Rakesh Garg has turned down a review demand for use of the technology for proving broadband connectivity in the country.

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While replying to a request from Prof Ashok Jhunjhunwala of IIT Madras to use WDM-PON (wavelength division multiplexed-passive optical network) over GPON, Garg in an internal note to the Prime Minister's Office said that alternate technologies such as WDM-PON are not yet available commercially.

"WDM-PON technology mentioned by Prof Jhunjhunwala is still evolving and may take another two years to be developed and deployed commercially," media reports said quoting Garg’s remark in the letter.

GPON technology is being used to carry voice, data and video signals in the national broadband project. The Rs 21,000-crore National Optic Fiber Network (NOFN) project, implemented by state-run Bharat Broadband Networks (BBN), aims to take high speed internet to 250,000 village blocks across India and it would help India to achieve its broadband penetration target of 600 mn users by 2020.

Telecom Engineering Centre, the Department of Telecom's technical arm, had also concluded that GPON would be able to meet the bandwidth requirement of gram panchayats, Garg said.

 

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