Fiberisation slow in key cities as telcos face cost challenges

MAXIMUM CITY MUMBAI has a large urban population and among the best device penetration ratios in the country, but it is posing a challenge for telecom operators and digital infrastructure providers.

- URVI MALVANIA

MAXIMUM CITY MUMBAI has a large urban population and among the best device penetration ratios in the country, but it is posing a challenge for telecom operators and digital infrastructure providers. The pain point—pace of fiberisation (laying optical fibre underground), which is instrumental in ensuring consistent delivery of telecom services. The reason—the cost of laying fibre.

According to industry estimates, the cost of laying 1 metre of underground fibre in the city can be as high as ₹16,902, compared with ₹426 in Delhi or ₹647 in Bengaluru. This means a service provider needs to shell out in excess of ₹1.5 crore for laying 1 km of fibre in the city.