As of November 30, 2025, Darjeeling has 1152 telecom towers installed and Kalimpong has 224, compared to 915 and 93, respectively, on March 31, 2019. Under the BharatNet project, 92 and 41 Gram Panchayats in Darjeeling and Kalimpong respectively have been planned for providing broadband connectivity and 22 GPs have been made service ready in Darjeeling so far. Under the PMWANI scheme (approved in December 2020), 122 Wi-Fi hotspots are installed in Darjeeling and 01 Wi-Fi hotspot is installed in Kalimpong. Under Digital Bharat Nidhi (Erstwhile USOF) funded mobile Towers made On-Air under 4G Saturation scheme, Darjeeling has 3 towers planned and 0 towers on air, while Kalimpong has 13 towers planned and 5 towers on air, totaling 16 towers planned and 5 towers on air. The total number of 5G BTSs installed in Darjeeling is 699 and in Kalimpong is 85 as of November 30, 2025. The answer was given by the Minister of State for Communications and Rural Development (Dr. Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar) on December 17th, 2025 to Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 2797 by Shri Raju Bista.
Key Entities Referenced
BharatNet: Project aimed at providing broadband connectivity to Gram Panchayats in India, mentioned in the context of infrastructure development in Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts.
PM-WANI: A scheme to establish public Wi-Fi networks by setting up Wi-Fi hotspots across the country, mentioned in relation to installations in Darjeeling and Kalimpong.
USOF: Universal Service Obligation Fund, referred to in the context of towers funded for installation in Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts.
Darjeeling & Kalimpong: Districts in West Bengal, India, which are the central focus of the question regarding telecom infrastructure and connectivity.
Ministry of Communications: The government ministry responsible for telecom infrastructure mentioned in the Lok Sabha question.
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS
DEPARTMENT OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2797
ANSWERED ON 17TH DECEMBER, 2025
MOBILE & INTERNET INFRASTRUCTURE - DARJEELING & KALIMPONG
DISTRICTS
2797. SHRI RAJU BISTA:
Will the Minister of COMMUNICATIONS be pleased to state:
(a) the details of telecom infrastructure works completed or sanctioned since 2019 (towers, fibre
kms, BharatNet, PM-WANI) in Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts;
(b) the number of USOF-funded towers sanctioned/installed in each district since 2019; and
(c) the timeline and plan for achieving full 5G coverage in these districts?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE FOR COMMUNICATIONS AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT
(DR. PEMMASANI CHANDRA SEKHAR)
(a) Details of telecom towers installed in Darjeeling & Kalimpong districts, is as below: -
S.no District As on 30.11.2025 As on 31.03.2019
1 Darjeeling 1152 915
2 Kalimpong 224 93
Under BharatNet project, in Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts, 92 Gram Panchayats (GPs)
& 41 GPs have been planned respectively for providing broadband connectivity and 22GPs have
been made service ready in Darjeeling so far.
Under PMWANI scheme (approved in December 2020), as on 30.11.2025, 122 Wi-Fi
hotspots are installed in Darjeeling and 01 Wi-Fi hotspot is installed in Kalimpong.
(b) As on 30.11.2025, Digital Bharat Nidhi (Erstwhile USOF) funded mobile Towers made On-
Air under 4G Saturation scheme in the Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts of West Bengal are as
under:
District Tower Planned Tower on Air
DARJEELING 3 -
KALIMPONG 13 5
Total 16 5
1(c) The total number of 5G BTSs installed in Darjeeling & Kalimpong districts, as on
30.11.2025 is as below:
S.no District Count of 5G BTSs
1 Darjeeling 699
2 Kalimpong 85
Deployment of 5G BTS by telecom service providers, in any specified geographical location,
depends on number of factors including techno-commercial feasibility, penetration of 5G compatible
devices and availability of necessary RoW permissions.
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