Hyderabad: Even if the state reports higher than average TV density and internet penetration, there are no more than 300 villages visited by mobile networks. The gap was recognized at the World Telecom Day Conference between Governor Jishnu Dev Varma and officials of the Department of Telecommunications (DOT), led by Prashant R. Patil, Special Bureau APLSA HYDERABAD.
According to DOT, Telangana has 48 million mobile connections, with a TV density of 109.27% and an Internet TV density of 94.92%, both above the national average. Of the 10,203 census villages in the state, 9,957 have mobile coverage. The remaining 303 are mainly in remote or tribal areas and are not connected yet. Officials said the regions will be covered by new 4G towers under the Digital Bharat Needi (DBN) initiative, but no timetable was given.
Patil also shared that the state has 30,744 mobile towers, making the tower density in Telangana above the national average. He said broadband and mobile services have been expanded to Gram panchayats, schools, health centers and other rural access points. The governor urged faster implementation, especially in indoor areas, and called for the integration of telecommunications with governance platforms like E-Panchayat.
The meeting also reviewed measures to address telecom fraud and improve user safety. Since January 2024, the department has launched 100% biometric-based digital KYC and banned paper simulation-based. Telangana is also one of the best performing states in mobile phone recovery through CEIR (Central Device Identification Register).
Now, citizens can report spam calls using platforms like Chakshu, verify SIM usage and lost track of devices – but officials have not disclosed how many complaints have been resolved or the average resolution time.
Although the governor acknowledged progress, he noted that ground connectivity must match numbers on paper.
