Parliament Question: Implementation of the Prime Minister Wi-Fi Access Network Interface (PM-WANI) Scheme in Karnataka

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2810 ANSWERED ON 5TH AUGUST, 2026 IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PRIME MINISTER WI-FI ACCESS NETWORK INTERFACE (PM-WANI) SCHEME IN KARNATAKA 2810. SHRI M MALLESH BABU: Will the Minister of COMMUNICATIONS be pleased to state: (a) the details of PM-WANI Public Data Offices (PDOs), Public Data Office Aggregators (PDOAs) and Wi-Fi hotspots established in Karnataka particularly in the Kolar Lok Sabha Constituency during the last five years, year and district-wise; (b) the details of funds allocated and utilised under the PM-WANI Scheme in Karnataka during the last five years, district-wise; (c) whether the Government has assessed the impact of the PM-WANI Scheme on digital connectivity, internet accessibility, digital education, e-governance and livelihood opportunities in Karnataka particularly in the Kolar Lok Sabha Constituency and if so, the details thereof; and (d) the steps taken by the Government to expand PM-WANI coverage, improve internet quality, encourage participation of local entrepreneurs and provide affordable public Wi-Fi services in rural and underserved areas of Karnataka particularly in the Kolar Lok Sabha Constituency? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE FOR COMMUNICATIONS AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT (DR. PEMMASANI CHANDRA SEKHAR) (a) The count of Public Data Offices (PDOs) registered under PM-WANI in Karnataka during the last five years, year-wise and district-wise is as below: - PDOs/ wi- PDOs/ wi- PDOs/ wi- PDOs/ wi- PDOs/ wi- fi hotspots fi hotspots fi hotspots fi hotspots fi hotspots District Name as on as on as on as on as on 31.3.2022 31.3.2023 31.3.2024 31.3.2025 31.3.2026 BAGALKOT 270 422 422 422 424 BALLARI 110 283 294 294 294 BELAGAVI 548 907 908 908 908 BENGALURU RURAL 1,061 1,155 1,158 1,164 1,166 BENGALURU URBAN 7,019 7,803 9,114 10,521 10,534 BIDAR 12 216 241 241 241 CHAMARAJANAGAR 145 195 195 197 197 CHIKKABALLAPUR 208 236 240 240 240 CHIKKAMAGALURU 21 389 389 390 390 CHITRADURGA 366 500 500 500 500 1DAKSHINA KANNADA 60 595 815 811 811 DAVANGERE 376 464 464 464 464 DHARWAD 342 590 590 590 590 GADAG 117 235 235 235 235 HASSAN 261 529 529 529 529 HAVERI 61 190 190 190 190 KALABURAGI 171 494 494 494 495 KODAGU 30 182 182 182 182 KOLAR 60 320 323 330 330 KOPPAL 23 130 132 133 134 MANDYA 24 192 192 192 192 MYSURU 92 496 498 498 500 RAICHUR 38 298 298 298 298 RAMANAGARA 30 64 64 64 64 SHIVAMOGGA 198 534 535 535 536 TUMAKURU 28 297 297 297 297 UDUPI 59 297 297 297 297 UTTARA KANNADA 200 478 478 478 478 VIJAYAPURA 9 212 212 215 215 YADGIR 37 62 62 62 62 Total 11,976 18,765 20,348 21,771 21,793 The count of Public Data Office Aggregators (PDOAs) registered under PM-WANI in Karnataka during the last five years, year-wise and district-wise is as below: - PDOAs PDOAs PDOAs PDOAs PDOAs District as on as on as on as on as on 31.3.2022 31.3.2023 31.3.2024 31.3.2025 31.3.2026 BAGALKOT 0 0 0 0 0 BANGALORE 0 0 0 0 0 RURAL BANGALORE 5 5 6 6 7 URBAN BELGAUM 1 1 1 1 1 BELLARY 0 0 0 0 0 BIDAR 0 0 0 0 0 CHAMARAJANAGAR 0 0 0 0 0 CHIKKABALLAPUR 0 0 0 0 0 CHIKKAMAGALURU 0 0 0 0 0 CHITRADURGA 0 0 0 0 0 DAKSHINA 0 0 0 0 0 KANNADA DAVANAGERE 0 0 0 0 0 DHARWAD 0 0 0 0 0 GADAG 0 0 0 0 0 GULBARGA 0 0 0 0 0 HASSAN 0 0 0 0 0 HAVERI 0 0 0 0 0 2KODAGU 0 0 0 0 0 KOLAR 0 0 2 2 2 KOPPAL 0 1 1 1 1 MANDYA 0 0 0 0 0 MYSORE 0 1 1 1 1 RAICHUR 0 0 0 0 0 RAMANAGARA 0 0 0 0 0 SHIMOGA 0 0 0 0 0 TUMKUR 0 0 0 0 0 UDUPI 0 0 0 0 0 UTTARA KANNADA 1 1 1 1 1 VIJAYANAGARA 0 0 0 0 0 VIJAYAPURA 0 0 0 0 0 YADGIR 0 0 0 0 0 Total 7 9 12 12 13 Under the existing PM-WANI architecture, details regarding count of PDOs and PDOAs are captured district wise. PDOAs registered in one state can provide wi-fi hotspot services in other states. The total number of unique PDOAs registered under the PM-WANI scheme is 206. (b) Under the PM-WANI framework, service provision is entirely market-driven, relying on local entrepreneurial initiative based on techno-commercial viability in an area. Government's role is limited to policy enablement with no separate funding provided to States, Union Territories or any of the stake holders. (c) & (d) The Government role is primarily of policy enablement. Further, to enhance the proliferation of PM-WANI hotspots across the country, including in rural and remote areas, the Government has carried out the following policy interventions in the PM-WANI framework: (i) The use of regular FTTH, aggregation of multiple access points to a single backhaul and Quick Response (QR) based authentication for secondary devices have been allowed with a view to cut costs and boost the viability of Public Data Offices (PDOs). (ii) Offloading of mobile data and sending of promotional or branding content to users have been allowed, with a view to enhance viability. (iii) Home and business wi-fi have been allowed to join PM-WANI, mutual roaming between PDOs has been permitted and the naming of Service Set Identifiers (SSIDs) has been standardised to enable easier discovery. Further, to reduce cost and enhance viability, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has issued a tariff order on retail broadband connectivity for PDOs, mandating that Internet Service Providers offer all retail FTTH broadband plans with maximum speed up to 200 mega bits per second to PDOs at tariffs not more than twice the corresponding consumer broadband tariff. The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has undertaken extensive awareness and outreach initiatives to create mass awareness about the PM-WANI framework and encourage its adoption. As on 30.6.2026, DoT has conducted 68 awareness workshops and 7 press briefings in Karnataka in addition to publication of 3 advertisements in print media. ***** 3