VIJAYAWADA: Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Tuesday directed telecom service providers to bridge the digital divide in Andhra Pradesh by expanding mobile networks to the state’s most remote areas, setting a clear objective of achieving absolute “last-mile connectivity.”
Chairing a high-level IT and telecom network review at his camp office, Naidu urged major telecom operators to explore the feasibility of installing over 2,300 pending cellular towers within the next 100 days.
The high-level strategy session saw the participation of IT and Communications Secretary Katamneni Bhaskar alongside senior representatives from the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), BSNL, Airtel, Jio, and Vodafone.
During the meeting, IT Secretary Katamneni Bhaskar briefed the Chief Minister that the state currently hosts an active network of 30,694 cell towers, with another 2,310 installations required to eliminate dead zones.
Responding to the data, Naidu assured providers of full state cooperation and administrative clearances, promising that the government would soon hand over a granular layout mapping out all geographically uncovered pockets.
The Chief Minister also detailed the digital infrastructure framework being mapped out for the capital city, Amaravati. He revealed that the capital is being hardwired with an advanced underground fibre network to deliver high-speed connectivity to every household without requiring recurrent road cutting or surface excavation.
Officials added that the state’s existing infrastructure boasts a massive 1,69,638-kilometre fibre optic backbone supporting 28.67 lakh active broadband connections.
Highlighting the next phase of governance, Naidu called on telecom operators to actively partner with the state to drive grassroots digital literacy.
He explained that a digitally literate populace is essential for citizens to leverage the state’s mobile-first initiatives, including the automated WhatsApp-based governance portal ‘Mana Mitra’ and the newly launched ‘Sanjeevani’ health matrix.
“Transforming citizens into digital literates will allow us to deliver a vast array of welfare and governance services directly to their mobile screens,” Naidu said.
He further disclosed that the state plans to soon deploy advanced AI-driven tools, including an AI Agronomist, AI Doctor, and AI Tutor, to revolutionise farming, health, and education.
The Chief Minister concluded by noting that a comprehensive pilot project is already underway in the Kuppam constituency to establish seamless, round-the-clock mobile coverage across all internal zones.