Under the National Mission on Education through Information and Communication Technology (NMEICT), it is envisaged to provide 15-20 broadband connections of 512 Kbps speed each to over 25000+ colleges including 2000 polytechnics in the country and 1 Gbps optical fibre connectivity to 419 universities/ university level institutions. The other components of the NMEICT Mission include provision of e-books and e-journals free to the learners, support for generation of e-contents for Under-Graduate and Post-Graduate level, creation of web and video courses under NPTEL (National Programme in Technology Enhanced Learning) in all branches of engineering and physical sciences, development of virtual laboratory, development of vocational education modules etc.

Under the NMEICT scheme, no financial assistance has been provided by the Central Government directly to States to implement the scheme/ project. For connectivity to universities and colleges, central share of 75% of the cost is directly released to the Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL)/ Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL) (implementing agency for connectivity) with the stipulation that the balance 25% of the cost would be deposited by the concerned institution directly to BSNL/ MTNL. The ratio in case of North Eastern Region (NER) is 90:10. However, as provided in the Mission document, funds have been released to universities/university level institutions of the country for various projects. Using computer infrastructure and connectivity, the reach of these facilities is ensured to the academic community.

This information was given by the Union Human Resource Development Minister, Smt. Smriti Irani in a written reply to the Lok Sabha question.

Source: PIB