Tamil Nadu to offer 100 Mbps Internet for Rs 200 per month and expand digital services

Palanivel Thiaga Rajan, Tamil Nadu’s Minister for Information Technology and Digital Services, has announced that households across the state will soon be able to access high-speed internet at speeds of up to 100 Mbps for just Rs 200 per month.

The announcement, made in the Legislative Assembly, represents a major step in Tamil Nadu’s broader digital transformation initiative. Responding to a discussion on funding for his department, Rajan outlined a series of measures aimed at enhancing digital access and equity across the state.

As part of the government’s efforts to bridge the digital divide between urban and rural areas, Rajan revealed that 10 lakh college students will receive free laptops or tablets through the Electronics Corporation of Tamil Nadu (ELCOT). A budget of Rs 2,000 crore has been allocated for 2025–2026 to distribute devices to 20 lakh students over the next two years. The initiative is intended to provide rural students with equal access to digital tools and learning resources.

In addition, the government is working to make over 260 government services easily accessible via WhatsApp. Initially, 50 services, such as utility bill payments, will be rolled out. A new e-KYC platform linked to Aadhaar will also be introduced to streamline beneficiary identification for welfare schemes.

Rajan also provided an update on the Tamil Nadu FibreNet Corporation Limited (TANFINET) project, which aims to lay 57,500 km of optical fibre to connect 12,525 villages with 1 Gbps bandwidth. He reported that 93% of the work has been completed, with 11,639 gram panchayats already connected. “Despite delays under the previous AIADMK government, the project has regained momentum under the current administration,” he said.

To facilitate last-mile connectivity, the government plans to adopt a franchise model similar to that used by cable television operators. So far, 4,700 panchayats have registered for the scheme to deliver 100 Mbps internet connections to individual households.

Rajan also announced upgrades to the TACTV service, which had previously faced operational issues. These include the introduction of HD set-top boxes and service improvements over the next three months. He stated that the project is expected to be fully operational by the end of the year, significantly enhancing connectivity across rural Tamil Nadu.