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September 2018

FTTx: Connecting the way to Industry 4.0

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Contents1. Introduction...................................................................................................................................................3

2. FTTHakeyobjectiveunderNationalDigitalCommunicationsPolicy.......................................................62.1Whyopticalfibreiscritical...........................................................................................................................62.2 Deepdeploymentoffibreisanationalimperative..............................................................................62.3 FiberisationofTowersisneeded..........................................................................................................82.4 MarketSize,InvestmentsandStatusofFTTHinIndia..........................................................................93. Government’sNetworkinfrastructurerolloutispivotaltoIndia’sambitions–needreformsinEaseofBusiness........................................................................................................................................................103.1 SuggestedobjectivesofGovernmentroll-out....................................................................................113.2 RecommendationsforBusinesspolicyfocusedonGovernmentdeployments.................................113.3 Synergizingwithotheressentialinfrastructures................................................................................163.4 SynergybetweenFibreandCoreCityInfrastructure..........................................................................173.5 Networkplanningspecialistaspartofcityplanning..........................................................................184. OpticalFibredeployments......................................................................................................................184.1 GlobalOpticalfibredeployments.......................................................................................................184.2 Indiavis-à-visothercountries.............................................................................................................194.3 ChallengesfacedbyprivatesectorsinthedeploymentofOpticalfibresinIndia..............................214.4 PolicyandRegulationsRecommendations.........................................................................................215. Governance.............................................................................................................................................245.1 SuggestedRegulatoryframework.......................................................................................................245.2 RoleofSteeringcommittee:...............................................................................................................266. Conclusion...............................................................................................................................................26

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1. IntroductionSincethe1990s,fourgenerationsofcellularnetworktechnologieshavepropelledustomovefromfrom "bag phones" that used slow 1G voice networks to sleek devices that make use of highthroughput4GLTE.Modernconsumershaveaccess toseemingly limitlessmultimediacontentonmobile devices,monitor fitness using wearable technologies, and answer the front door using asmartphoneapplication.

Source:TRAIAsIndiaforgesaheadwithoneoftheworld’slargestandperhapsthemostambitiousdigitalinclusionagendasthroughitsDigitalIndiavision,itisimperativetodesign,build,andmanagetheoptical-fibreinfrastructure inmuch the sameway thatotheressential infrastructure (power,water andgas) isarchitected.Fibreisthebackboneofambitiousdigitalizationplans,andallinitiativestoensureitsfastandefficientrolloutsitatthecenterofdigitalSuccess.Dataconsumptiondrivesprogress.ThescaleofdataconsumptioninIndiaisunparalleledwith40%internetusergrowthatatimewhenglobalgrowthisflattening.TheGovernment’sJAMplatformwilltransformtheentirepopulationbasetowardsprogress.WithIndiaexpectedtobethemostpopulouscountryinlessthanadecade,thecomplexityandscaleofdatawillalsoincrease.TheneedforSmartCitiesbasedonitsliveabilitystandardsispivotaltoIndia’sgoalsasaproductivegloballeader.Astrongfibrenetworkbackboneisimperativeforhigh-speedbroadband,integratedsensors,publicWifi,andothersmartelementstohelpthecountrytrulytapitsdigitalpotential.Whilesignificantinvestmentismadeintheinfrastructureofpowergridsandwaterandgassuppliestoensurebetterqualityoflifeforcitizens,equalfocusisrequiredtobegiventofibrenetworks.Theimmediateneedforstrongbackhaulfibrei-WaysandsmartbuildingsandhomeswithFTTxisknown.Behaviourwise,fibreisinmanywayssimilartootherutilitieslikeroadsandelectricity–intermsofdeployment and end benefit to the consumers and hence needs an ease of business policy thataddressessimilarissues.

2%

17%

81%

Technology-wiseDataUsage(Dec2017)

2G 3G 4G

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India’sNationalDigitalCommunicationsPolicy(NDCP)hasambitiousgoalsforfixedlineaccessandbandwidthforcitizens.IthasrecognizedopticalfibreasapublicutilityandrenderedimportancetoaFibre First initiative, a National Digital Grid with constitution of National Fibre Authority andfiberisationoftowers.WhiletherolloutofopticalfibrenetworksiswellrecognizedintheNDCP,AnintegratedEaseofBusinesspolicythataddressestheobjectivesofhighqualityrobustNetworkswithefficientrolloutsbecomesextremelypivotaltoensuretheFTTxinfrastructureiswelllaidoutandissustainedforaminimumof30years.SimilartothePrivatesector,thepublicsectororGovtorganisationsare fastbecominganequalor abig stakeholder indata intensivenetworks throughBharatNet,SmartCities,DefenceNetworksandprospectsofNagarNet,GramNet,amongothers.AneaseofbusinesspolicythataddressoperationalandfiscalhurdlesofboththeprivatesectorandtheGovernmentneedsearlyactivationforIndia’sdigitalleadership.Thegovernmentinmanywaysisoutpacingtheprivatesector in largescaledeployments.Asakeystakeholderofdigitisation,anEaseofBusinesspolicyforGovernmentdeploymentsisveryimportantatthisstagetoensurethegovernmentnetworksstandthetestoftimeandintegrateseamlesslywiththe private sector roll out. A governancemechanism also needs to be set around the high scaledeployment of these data intensive networks. Here, role of an empowered steering committeebecomesextremelycritical.TheprivatesectorwelcomesthecommonductsinitiativeofthegovernmentandinthenearfutureneedsfastandeasyROWpermissionsatcalibratedprices.TheROWPortalcanbecomeatestimonyofeaseofbusinessandtransparency. ItcansimplifytimelyapprovalforROWpermissions, includeintegratedmaps of all utilities to prevent any damage to other pipelines and become the singleplatformofengagementforROWtherebyreducingsignificantlythenumberofon-groundpersonnelneededtoaddressROW.Security forallpublicutilities includingFibrecanbebetteraddressedbysynergisingallutilitiesthroughintegratedmapsandinclusionasapartofcityplanning.ForFTTHFiber,notificationinBuildingcodesisneededtoensurefastandeasyrolloutintoallbuildings.Giventhechallengingeconomicsofdeployingfibre,aswellasitsinherentpublicutility,legalrecoursesneedtobedesignedtoprotectfromandenforceagainstthewillfuldamageofOpticalfibernetworks.5Gisthenextstepintheevolutionofcommunicationstechnology.Connecteddevicesofthefuturewill include large numbers of autonomous vehicles, augmented/virtual reality (AR/VR) devices,infrastructuresensorsforsmarttransportation,publicsafetyapplications,andairbornedrones.5Gwillenablethesekindsoftechnologiesatexceptionalscales,datarates,andlowlatencies.Tosupportallofthis,5Gisexpectedtoprovidegigabitspeeds,subone-millisecondlatency,andthecapacitytoconnectanastonishing2.5milliondevicespersquaremile.5Gwill alsoplaceenormousdemands for fixed-wirelinenetworks.5Gwill usemuchhigher radiofrequenciesthantoday’scellularnetworks.Whilethesehigherfrequenciescarrylargeramountsofdata,theyalsohaveveryshortranges.For5Gtoworkwell,manyadditionalsmallradiosor“cells”mustbeinstalledclosetogether—ascloseas100feetapart,leadingtodensificationofnetworks.Toprovide multi-gigabit service to many users and applications, these small cells will need to beconnectedtohundredsofthousands—perhapsmillions—ofmilesofnewfiberopticcable.AsperCisco,India’sIPtrafficwillgrow4-foldfrom2016to2021,atacompoundannualgrowthrateof 30%, of which internet video traffic will reach 3.6 Exabytes per month in 2021, which isapproximately5millionGBperhour.Ahighspeedtechnology,capableofhighthroughputandlowlatencyisfundamentaltoachievingthisgrowth.Fibertothehomeistheonlyviablecontenderthatcandealwiththiseffectively.

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Source:CISCOVNIIndex

There is no doubt Digital inclusion can help improve any nation’s economy and sustainabledevelopment.Ubiquitousbroadbandisagrowthenginefordemocracy.Whatisunfoldinginfrontofusisamassivedigitalinclusionecosystem,drivenbythemultipliereffectof–More‘connected’people,Moredevicesperperson,More ‘content’perdevice andmoredataconsumptionpercontent type:Already,theannualglobalIPtraffichascrossed1Zettabyte(ZB)andisexpectedtoexceed3ZBinthenextfiveyears(1ZB=1021bytes).Percapitadataconsumptionissettomultiplynearlyfivetimesinthenextthreeyears!WiththeuptakeofIOT,M2Mand5G,dataconsumptionisexpectedtorisebysignificantordersofmagnitude.Opticalfiberisgettingimplementedas“FibertotheHome(FTTH)”solution.Onceahomeisconnectedthroughfibreinthelastmile,wecansaythatithasdirectaccesstotheInternetSuperHighway:entirecontent, information and applications available through the web can be accessed without anylimitationsorconstraint.OneofthemostvaluedapplicationsthatwilldrivedemandforFTTHinIndiawillbe‘quadplay’ofhighspeedbroadbandaccesswithspeedsupto100Mbps,high-definitionvideo,unlimitedtelephonyandsmartapplicationsviz.IPTV,InteractiveTV,HD-TV,VoIP,SmartAppliances(IoT /M2M), livemusic &Movie streaming and downloads,multiplayer online gaming and homesecurity systemswith remotemonitoring. Enterprise businesseswill benefit significantly from theimplementation of FTTH networks through the use of bandwidth intensive applications viz. nextgenerationvideoconferencing,interactivedistancelearning,telemedicine,etc.

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2. FTTHakeyobjectiveunderNationalDigitalCommunicationsPolicyWhiletheGovernmentispromotingthedevelopmentoffixedlinecommunicationsthroughitsnewlydrafted telecom policy – National Digital Communications Policy – India’s predominant mode ofcommunication, whether voice or data is still done over mobile networks. The government hasidentifiedthekeybenefitsofOFCandhasbuiltuponvariousmissionstoachievethevisionofDigitalIndia through its draft National Digital Communication policy 2018. “Implementing a ‘Fibre FirstInitiative’totakefibretothehome,toenterprisesandtokeydevelopmentinstitutionsinTierI,IIandIIItownsandtoruralclusters:i.AccordingTelecomOpticFibrecablesthestatusofPublicutilityii. Promoting collaborationmodels involving state, localbodiesandprivate sectorasnecessary forprovisionofsharedductinfrastructureinmunicipalities,ruralareasandnationalhighwaysiii. Facilitating Fibre-to-the-tower programme to enable fiberisation of at least 60% base stationstherebyacceleratingmigrationto4G/5Giv. Leveraging existing assets of the broadcasting and power sector to improve connectivity,affordabilityandsustainability.v.Incentivisingandpromotingfibreconnectivityforallnewdevelopmentalconstructionvi. By making requirement for telecom installations and the associated cabling and in-buildingsolutionsmandatoryininallcommercial,residentialandofficespacesbyamendingNationalBuildingCodeofIndia(NBC),throughBureauofIndianStandards(BIS)”TheNDCP2018hasaccordedopticalfibrethestatusofapublicutilityandrenderedimporttoaFibreFirst initiative,aNationalDigitalGridwithconstitutionofNationalFibreAuthorityandthefiberisationoftowers.

2.1Whyopticalfibreiscritical

• Almost unlimited data capacity, very little attenuation: For enhanced citizens’ andgovernment’sneeds

• Ultra-fastspeeds:Datacantravelat70%ofthespeedof light!Speedmultipliesasseveralwavelengthstravelatthesametime

• 1GBdatacantravelover120kmonasinglefibre• ResistancetoEMwaves:Idealfordeploymentincitiesweretherecanbeinterferencefrom

powerwiring• Easytobend:Ideasforuseincongestedurbanareasforlast-mileconnectivity• Secure: Signals travel at the centre of the cable (core) and do not get radiated out; and

attemptsattappingcaneasilybemonitoredMoreover,acrossgenerations(2G–5G)oftechnologies,fibrehasplayedakeyrole,eitherinbackbonenetwork, mobile backhaul or as access technologies like FTTx. Fibre has formed the core of thenetworkfromthe2Gera,connectingmajorcities,to3Gwhereitconnectedsmallertownsandsub-urbanareas,to4Gfortowerbackhaul.WithFTTxand5G,fibrewillbeessentialforconnectinghomesandbuildings.Itsusehasprogressedfromcoremetrosandisnowentrenchedinthelastmileaswell.

2.2 Deepdeploymentoffibreisanationalimperative

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The futureofDigital-India lies in thedata intensive 5G,M2Mand IoT.Optical Fibrenetworks arefoundationaltothesuccessofthedatadrivenera.Indiahasambitiousplansontheusageofthedatanetworks.OpticalfibreconnectivityiscriticalfordataintensiveenvironmentbutIndiaisdeficientinFibreConnectivity,pivotaltoqualityutilizationandadaptionof5G,dataintensiveusage,eraofvideoandvideocallingandIoT.Privatesectorcansupportinachievingtheobjectivesofdataempowermenttothenextbillionwithtruebroadband.With a promise of 10Gbps speed, less than 1 ms latency and 90% reduction in network energyutilization,5Gwillspurthenextroundoftelecominfrastructureinvestments.Thegrowthof5GwillbefueledbyasharphikeinconsumerdataandtheproliferationofIoTdevices.Self-sustainingsmartcitieswillbecomelandsofprogressandthe65%ruralpopulationwillbecometherealdisruptor.RuralIndiawillgiveusuniquecasestudiesthatwecantaketotheworld.5GandIoTwillreshapethewaydatawillbeusedandthewaynetworkswillbebuilt.Withthecomingofconnectedmobility,lowornolatencyrequirementswillbetheneedofthehour.Therefore,datacenterswillmovetotheedgeand fibre will become the great disruptor in the network infrastructure where Software DefinedNetworks(SDN)willhavefibreconnecteddirectlytowhiteboxes.

Source:Cisco,SterlitetechnologiesAnnualglobalIPtrafficwillreach3.3ZBperyearby2021,or278exabytes(EB)permonth.In2016,theannualrunrateforglobalIPtrafficwas1.2ZBperyear,or96EBpermonth.Deloittepredicts5GwillexpandthenetworkeffectdramaticallybyextendingthereachoftheInternettoalmostanykindofconnection,byalmostanykindofdevice,whereverawirelesssignalcanreach.Marketsthatattractthemostusersfirstwillalsoinfluencefurtherinnovationas5Gnetworksmatureand become ubiquitous. As different kinds of devices connect, new use cases will emerge forcollectionsofdevicespreviouslyconsideredunrelated,attractingevenmoreinvestmentanddrivingspillover economic benefits. The United States, Japan, and South Korea have allmade significantstridestoward5Greadiness,butnonetothesameextentasChina.InfrastructurespendingandtowerdensitydistinguishChina’sleapforwardandhighlightthedegreetowhichChinaoutpacestheUnitedStatesduringtheseearlystagesof5Gdeployment.

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Bharatnet,theworld’slargestruralbroadbandconnectivityproject,envisagesanetworkofcloseto700,000 kmofOFC toprovidebroadband connectivity in the country’s 250,000 villages.Asof 2ndSeptember2018,atotalof2,87,878kmsofOpticalfiberhasbeenlaidover1,19,035GPs.Indiaissettowitnesssurgingdatatrafficowingtohighernumberofconnecteddevices,increaseinvideo consumption and growing data consumption per unit led by higher data speeds. To deliverinternetreliablyanddeliverbandwidth-hungryapplicationssuchaslivestreamingcoachingclasses,fibreisthemostsuitablemediumforcarryinghighamountofdataoverlongdistances.The main advantage of optical fiber communication over electrical cable transmission is its highbandwidth capability (almost 10Gps) over long distances due to the extremely low loss at samespecific wavelengths (e.g. 1.3 um and 1.55 um). Moreover, optical fibers are also immune toelectromagneticinterference.Multimodeopticalfibercanreadilytransmithighbandwidthdataoverlongdistances;atypicalbandwidth-distanceproductformultimodefiberis500MHz/km,soa500mtether can transmit 1 GHz (several Gbits/second, with appropriate modulation).Signallossesover500marenegligible;thebandwidthislimitedbydispersionofsignals.Thefibrenetworkbackboneistheinformationhighwayforcrucialserviceslikehigh-speedbroadband,integratedsensors,publicWifi,andothersmartelementstohelpcitiestrulytaptheirpotential.Whilesignificant investment ismade in the infrastructure of power grids andwater and gas supplies toensurebetterqualityoflifeforcitizens,equalfocusisrequiredtobegiventofibrenetworks.

2.3 FiberisationofTowersisneededIndiahascurrently4,82,271towers(TarangSanchar)andonly20-30%arefiberized.TheInternationalTelecommunicationUnion(ITU),inits“TrendsinTelecommunicationReform2017”reportestimatesthatongoingcapitalinvestmentsrelatedtofibreinfrastructurewillreachastaggering$144.2billionbetween2014and2019Ahugeexplosionofdata,especiallyvideo,flowingfromtomorrow’s5Gradiosandbasetransceiverstations(BTS)istheprimarydriverforthisimmensecapitalinvestmentintofibreinfrastructuredeployments.In termsof the total fibredeployedtopopulation ratio, Indiahasa lotofcatchingup todowhencomparedwiththeUSandChina.India’sratiostandsatjust0.1xwhencomparedtoUSA's1.4xandChina's0.9x.Additionally,abroadbanddensityofjust13%,comparedtoChina’s81%presentsahugeopportunityforinfrastructureplannerstodesignasharedcommonfibreinfrastructurefortelecomserviceproviders,cableTVproviders,internetserviceprovidersandcloudanddata-centerproviders.

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Source:CRU,Wikipedia,Deloitte,Akamai,SterlitetechnologiesThegovernment'shistoricandambitiousplanonBharatNetisonesuchanswertohowIndiawillleaddigital disruption andhow the roll out of BharatNetwill become A global case study.Unlike thecurrentstatsonourruralcommunity,65%ofIndia’spopulationwillsurprisetheworldwithinnovativeadaption and disruptive consumption of data. As an example, rural is not known to be a readingpopulationbutthisverypopulationwillredefineinteractiveeducation,entertainment,e-Gov,healthetc.NewbusinessmodelsbasisthewaytheyengagetheNetworkwillemerge.Ruralwillcapturetheeraofvideoandvideocalling.AllthisrequiresarobustandscalablesustainedFibreNetwork.Theessentialnervoussystemofopticalfibreacrossthenation’sbroadbandinfrastructureneedstobeinplaceattheearliestandshouldbedeployedinamannerthatsustainstheinfrastructureforaminimumof30years.EaseofBusinessinitiationinrolloutandmaintenanceneedstobeaddressed.Indiaranks100thontheWorldBank’scovetedEaseofDoingBusinessIndexwithaspirationstomoveto rank 50by 2018.Appropriatemeasures should be taken by the country to re-orientating theirparametersof ranking in the ITCdevelopment index. Industryandministrymustworktogether toimproveIndia'srankingtoreacheveryhouseholdswiftly.Countriesarerankedonregulatoryaspectsofbusinessclimate.Theentirelifecycletoinfrastructurerollouthastobeaddressed-Fromplanningtodeployment,withfocusonbusinessprocess.Thiswilladdressspeedofrollout,qualityofnetworkandefficientcashflow.Astrongeaseofbusinesspolicy intelecominfrastructurewillensurebetteraccountability,lesserdelaysandstrongerSLAs.Theexistingprocessisriddledwithmanychallenges,thatifsolvedwill ensure healthy competition, and a sustainable industry that promotes the objectives of thegovernment Allmeasures need to be taken for better accountability& faster deployments of BBinfrastructure. Further, in government deployments, a single POC for faster approvals, quickgovernmentpaymentsandadviceonbetterresourcemanagementwillsupportspeed,qualityandhealthyindustry-whichistheneedofthehour.

2.4 MarketSize,InvestmentsandStatusofFTTHinIndiaGiventhefactthatthereare20MnFixedBroadbandconnectionsasofnowinIndiaandonly2MnFiber-to-the-Home(FTTH)connections,thereishugepotentialtoconverttheremaining18MnfixedbroadbandconnectionstoFTTHConnections.AssuminganconservativeaverageARPUof INR250-

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500persubscriberpermonth,theTotalMarketsizeinIndiaisestimatedtobeoftheorderof5400-10800Cr(USD2billion).Investments inFTTHare increasing.Basedon researchconductedbyRVALLC for theFiber to theHomeCouncilAmericas(nowFiberBroadbandAssociation)in2016,13.7millionhomesareconnecteddirectly to fiber, and34millionhaveaccess toFTTH.Therearewellover1,000 fiber-to-the-homedeploymentsintheU.S.ofvaryingsizesandarchitecturesandthemomentumispickingup.Fiberwillenable5Gdeploymentandthetwotechnologiesarecomplementary.BSNL&MTNL are one of the earliest operators to have launched FTTH services in Rajasthan (sixdistricts)&Delhirespectively.TheservicesincludedIPTV,HD-TV,Video-on-demand,andHighSpeedBroadband&VideoConferencing.Otheroperatorsviz.RJio&AirtelhavelaunchedtheirhighspeedfiberaccessnetworksbasedonFTTHinthemetrosandurbancities.RJiohasplanstolaunchitinsmalltownsaswell.HomeBroadbandandEnterpriseBroadbandbasedonfiberprovidestruehighspeedBroadbandwithspeedsupto100Mbpsandwithhighcapacitiesupto100Gbpspersubpermonth.Almostallserviceprovidersarearebullishontheoutlookforthismarket.Aplethoraofbroadbandenabledservicesinthe area of entertainment, home automation besides other services as real-time online securityservices,automatedlighting,aredrivingtheuptakeoftheseservices.Alsoafixedinfrastructurebasedonfiberlendsitselftoarobustreliable,always-onWi-FiserviceswhichhelpsdrivebroadbandandalsohelpsinfasterdataservicesbyoffloadingmobiletrafficatWifihotspots.WiththeemphasisonrapidbroadbandpenetrationandalsowithROWrulesbeingnotifiedbytheGovtandwithBuildingCodesbeingmandated, it isexpected that therewillbe increasingly largerrollouts of FTTH in the future by all operators. The prospects of the telecom sector could beinextricablylinkedwiththepotentialandperformanceinthebroadbandsector.With1billioncitizenswaitingtobebroadband-connected,spectrumdeficienciesgettingovercome,difficultiesinrollingoutOFC& towersnearing resolutionand theenormousopportunitiesofDigital India, thepotential inIndianBroadbandisexpectedtobetrulyremarkable.Itwouldhoweverbenaivetoexpectthat,in1-2 years, we would be able to completely close the enormous gap between us and comparableeconomiesinrespectofbroadbandpenetration.Withalleffortsanddedication,wemightaccomplishglobalparityinmaybenext3-5years;however,thegreattake-offcouldwellhappenrightnowwithlaunch&accelerationofFTTH.

3. Government’sNetworkinfrastructurerolloutispivotaltoIndia’sambitions–needreformsinEaseofBusiness.Indiahastherealopportunitytofastexpandinsocioeconomicgrowththroughdigitalnetworks.Tofutureproof theprogressofourcitizens inourcitiesandvillages,wemustensurescalablerobustsecurenetworksthatstandthetestoftimethroughanholisticEaseofdoingBusinesspolicygiventheimportanceofthisinfrastructure.With1.3billioncitizensandgrowing,congestedIndiadoesnothavetheluxurytodisruptmovementformultipleroll-outsofopticalfibreNetworks.Withtimeofessence,certainmeasurescanacceleratetheefficiencyandpaceofqualitynetworkrollout.Muchunlikethecurrentstatsonourruralcommunity,the65%ofIndia’spopulationwillsurprisetheworldwith innovativeadaptionanddisruptive consumptionofdata through theBharatNet.Asanexample, rural is not known to be a reading population but this very population will redefineinteractiveeducation, entertainment, e-Gov, health etc., newbusinessmodels basis theway theyengagetheNetworkwillemerge.Ruralwillcapturetheeraofvideoandvideocalling.AllthisrequirearobustscalablesustainedFibreNetwork.Therefore,StepstakenbytheGovt.towardsthefastroll

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out of such Networks like BharatNet, NagarNet, Gram Net with assertive timelines is wellappreciated.Theessentialnervoussystemoftheopticalfibreacrossthenation’sbroadbandinfrastructureneedstobeinplaceattheearliestandshouldsustainaminimumof30years.EaseofBusinessinitiationinthefastrolloutandmaintenanceneedstogetaddressed.Indiaranks100thontheWorldBank’scovetedEaseofDoingBusiness Indexwithaspirations tomoveto the50thby2018.Appropriatemeasures should be taken by country for re-orientating their parameters of ranking in the ITCdevelopment index. Industryandministrymustwork together to improve India's ranking to reacheveryhouseholdswiftly.Countriesarerankedonregulatoryaspectsofbusinessclimate.Indiahasanopportunityto leapfrogandveryrapidlydeployfibre.BridgingthisdivideforaDigitalIndiaisahugeresponsibility.Theentirelifecycletoinfrastructurerollouthastobeaddressed-FromPlanningtodeploymentwithfocusonbusinessprocess.Thiswilladdressspeedofrollout,qualityofnetworkandefficientcashflow.Astrongeaseofbusinesspolicyintelecominfrastructurewillensurebetteraccountability,lesserdelaysandstrongerSLAs.To build future ready networks, OFC density has to be immensely improved , and requires acomprehensiveplanandsynergieswithotherPrivateSectorNetworksandothercoreinfrastructuresuchaspower,watersupply,androads.

3.1 SuggestedobjectivesofGovernmentroll-outBuild,expandandde-risktheinfrastructurewiththeobjectivethatit:

• Meetthecapacityrequirementsforthenext40years

• Meetglobalstandardsonreliabilityof99.999percent(59s)withalmostnolatency

• Comprehensivecoverageforon-demandavailabilityanduniformgrowth.

• Minimuminconveniencetocitizensduringinitialbuildoutandduringoperations

• Minimisetimetorollout

• Makeavailableondemandtoeveryuserthroughatransparentprocess

3.2 RecommendationsforBusinesspolicyfocusedonGovernmentdeploymentsGovtNetworksarecriticalfortheubiquitousBBnetworkofIndia.AnEaseofBusinesspolicyfocusedonGovernmentdeploymentswillensurequalitynetworks,predictabilityoftimeandthebestpartnerstosupportinrollouts. Itwillalsoleadtobetteraccountability, lesserdelaysandstrongerSLAs.ToEnsureGovtDeploymentsarefastpacedandhighqualitybytransformingtheRFPprocesstoensurepredictable timelines, benchmarked eligibility criteria for partners, quick and lesser number ofapprovals and on time payments. This will increase confidence in ensuring quality with strongerpartnersandcompetition.

a. Need for aNational Fiber Planwith an integratedNetworkmapof physical layer thataddresseshigherFibreCapacitysufficientfornext20years.

b. TransformationoftheRFPprocess

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a. PreRFP-PlanningwithIntegratedBudgetplanningb. standardisationofRFPtoincreaseefficiencyandprotectagainstdelaysc. Clearlydefinedtimelinesateachstage–fromevaluationtofinalawardthat is

adheredtoincreaseaccountabilitytowardstimelines.

a. EfficienciesinROWPermissionsthroughSingleWindowClearanceportal:acrosscenterandstatetobringtransparencyandpredictability.

c. Executionefficiencieswithlesserapprovals:Betterefficienciesandreductionofhumantouch-points in execution, documentation will lead to better efficiencies and muchneededfasterrollouts

d. PredictabilityincashflowtoEPCpartnersforredeploymentofresourcesandhealthyindustryecosystemthrough80%paymentbeforeusageof thenetworkpostwhichaninterestislevied.Aminimumof10-15%ofadvancemobilisationofshouldbepaidbythegovtagainstbankguaranteebeforerollout.

e. CentrallyHeldGuidelinessynergisewithotherUtilities that includestandardssuchasGISmapping,‘callbeforeyoudig’andUtilitiescorridors.Createabroad-basedCentrallyHeldGuidelinesfordeploymentoffundamentalinfrastructure,5Gwillrequiredensefibernetworkinfrastructure

f. EnsureaStrongGovernanceMechanismthroughaSteeringcommittee:forexpediting

the entire lifecycle of payment to roll out of infrastructure. The head of the steeringcommittee shouldbeempowered tobe the singlepointof contact from thegovtandmakedecisionsforsmoothandon-timedeliveryofthegovernmentprojects.

Theexistingprocessisriddledwithmanychallenges,thatifsolvedwillensurehealthycompetition,andasustainableindustrythatpromotestheobjectivesoftheGovt.Allmeasuresneedtobetakenforbetteraccountability&fasterdeploymentsofBBinfra.Further,inGovtdeploymentsasinglePOCforfasterapprovals,quickGovtpaymentsandadviceonbetterresourcemanagementwillsupportspeed,qualityandfinancialhealthoftheindustry.PreRFP-Planning:Budgetsformegarollouts• Thebudgetplanningcanbemoreintegratedtocoverallaspectsoffinancialspend.Aninclusive

budgetarytemplatemustbecreated.Thisexercisewillensurerealisticbudgetaryexerciseandwill help strategize effectively. Technical modifications, resources, manpower cost, projectmargins, taxes, financial costs, SI margins are currently not factored in the budget. Pre-consultationwithsystemintegrators(SI)andfinancialconsultantscanhelpaddressthisissue.

• ThebudgettemplatemustalsoautomaticallyfactorinInflationcostsandprojectadditionsasdelaysfromthecreationofthebudgettotheawardingofthecontractoftencreateasignificantgap.Asanexample;Rs.600croresbudgetwascreatedforanimportantprojectintheyear2007-08.Theprojectwasdelayedby8yearsandtheactualcostof theprojectdueto inflationandadditionsincreasedbyover400%.However,thebudgetdidnotreflecttheincreasebecausethetemplatedidnotautomaticallyincludeanychangeinprojectorthetimedelaythatledtoinflation.Theindustrywillfaceabiglossandaprojectofgreatprideandvaluedropsinitspriority.

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RFPandBidPlanning:standardizingformatswillreducedelaysandcreateeaseinselection• The final bid format, if standardized, will bring better transparency and focus to deliver to

quality.Lackofabidformatinvitesambiguityandhugeresourcetimeinfiguringouttheprocesswithbidssubmittedinvariousformats.Thisambiguityalsoleadstosignificantdelaysinselectionandcriticaltimelinesareimpactedwhileawardingtheproject.

• TheRFP canalsoexplicitlyhighlight roles, responsibilitieswith timelines that thebuyerandvendorareaccountableto.Thiswillbringbetteraccountability,efficiencyandclarityinhowtheprocessfunctions.Atpresent,roles,responsibilitiesandcleartimelinesarenotdefinedandclearlyset,whichleadstoambiguityandextensionofprojectswhichareofnationalimportancetous

• Thetimelinesateachstage– fromevaluationtofinalaward-shouldbeclearlydefinedandadheredto increaseaccountability towardstimelines.Currently, theevaluationprocessoftentakeslong,leadingtodelaysinfinalawarding.Theindustryisoftennotawareofbywhenthefinalawardwilltakeplace.Forexample:Abidagreedin2015sawthePOinlate2017.

• Digitisationofdocumentsubmissionshouldbecomeabenchmarkedstandardtosavetimeandresources. Currently, hundreds of documents are submitted by hand with the governmentauthoritiesbythebidder, leadingtowastageofpaper,timeandresources.Thissmallshiftwillleadtomoreefficiencyandsustainablepractices.Thedigitisedprocesswillsetcleartimelinesforcompletion.

Planning:Award• Paymentprocessandpaymentauthorities, ifclearlydefinedanddocumentedatthetimeof

awarding the contract,will lead to an increase in efficiency and ease of business attributes.Payment framework, processes, time taken at each step and sample template of documentsshouldbe explicitly defined, lackofwhich leads to avoidabledelays andeffort onpart of thebidder.

• TimelineoftheprojectshouldstartfromthedaywhentheauthoritiesgivethefinalgoaheadforbeginningoftheprojectpostpermissionslikeRoWandapprovals.Forexample:aprojectagreedto be finished in 3months is not able to start on time due to 2months taken for getting allnecessaryRoWpermissionsandapprovals,whichleadstodelayof2monthsincompletionofa3-monthlongproject.Duetothisdelay,LiquidatedDamages(LD)aredeductedbythepurchaser,evenwhentheprojectgetsextendedwithnofaultofthebidder.Hence,aclearlineofauthorityshouldbeidentifiedinthetenderfortimeextensioninstances.

Execution:PermissionsROWcontinuestocreatedelaystorolloutopticalfibre.Currently,duetolackofdefinedprocesses,permissionsandapprovalsduringtheawardingandexecutionstageofprojecttakestoomuchtime.

• Approvalswithin30daysofapplicationsubmittedandifnotactedupon,adeemedapprovalmustautomaticallycomeintoplay.

• StandardratesfortheROWwillbringeasetocashflowpredictability.• Anodalagencytoeasethemultiplepermissionsrequiredandtodriveprojectfromcustomer

sideforsmoothoperation.• Asinglewindowclearancebyleveragingdigitaltobringtransparencyandpredictability.

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Execution:ApprovalsMultiplegovernmentpersonnelare currently tasked toapprove the samesectionsofdeploymentwithsignificantnumberofhumantouchpointsleadinginefficienciesintime,costandresource.Eachrepresentativecurrentlyneedstocometothesitetoapprovethenext level.This leadstotediousprocesses,massivedelaysandfrustrationsonbothends.Aprojectoftenhas15daysofdeploymentand40oddapprovals.Betterefficienciesandreductionofhumantouch-pointsinexecution,documentationwillleadtobetterefficienciesandmuchneededfasterrolloutsthrough:

• Stringentvendorselectioncriteria• FocusonoperatingfromstandardsandstrongSLAs• Reduction of approvals by further empowering government officials to represent various

departmentsandsimultaneouslyhaveanefficientutilisationoftechnologyforsurveillanceanddocumentation

• Technologysupportedauditsalsosupportthecommitmenttoquality• Self-certificationandsampleauditingforoptimisingtime,resourcesandcost.• Digitizationofdocuments:Automatedworkflowforinterdepartmentalapprovalsandconcept

ofpartnerportaltobeleveragedusingERPsystems.• TheProjectManagementconsultant/ThirdPartyAdministratorshouldbemadeaccountable

fortheprojectdelaysandhenceneedtosharetheLD/Penaltyburden.• Numberofprocesses indeployment identified, timelines foreachandeveryproject tobe

fixed.Fixtheaccountabilityofapersontotheconcernedactionoftheproject.• Impropersurveysduringdeploymentcausesdelayinexecution.Hence,nationallyavailable

data shouldbe leveragedanda centralGISagency for comprehensiveareawisedatabaseshouldbecreated.Continuousreviewofworkshouldbedonebymonitoringdailyprogressandcreatingreports.Further,flagscanberaisedincaseofmissingdailytarget.

Execution:PaymentsPredictabilityinCashFlowforredeploymentofresourcesandhealthyindustryecosystem:WithLargeGovernmentroll-outsinBharatNet,SmartCities,anddefence,predictabilityofcashflowis essential to strengthen the industry, create vibrant competition and ensure amotivated focustowardssmartandfastrollouts.Significantdelaysinpaymentareoftenviewedasabigbarrierduetothefinancialriskandcreateseriouscashflowissues.Easeofbusinessisensuringontimepaymentswill bring transformational change resonating intoa vibrantmatureecosystem.Andensure fasterredeploymentofresourcestowardsthecommoncause.Wesuggest:PredictabilityinCashFlowforredeploymentofresourcesandhealthyindustryecosystem:

• Ontimepaymentbeforeusageofthenetworkpostwhichaninterestislevied.• Aminimumof10-15%ofadvancemobilisationofshouldbepaidbythegovtagainstbank

guaranteebeforerollout.• Adigitalapprovalframeworktosynergiseexecutionapprovals,documentationandpayments

foroptimisationoftime,effectivenessandresource.• Singlewindowclearanceforpayments• Strengthenthepenalty&theaccountabilitytowardslatepayment

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• Document around govt payment & deployments- should include automation of docs,automationofdigitalpayments,automationofcredits.

• Issuance of ‘Letter of credit’ should be adopted as the payment mechanism by theGovernment.Thisisawidelyacceptedpaymentmechanismwithalmost90%transactionsintheprivatesectorhappeningthroughLOC.Theprocessinvolvespaymentbyabankonbehalfof the purchaser post submission of work completion documents, including a completioncertificatefromthepurchase.

• Recognition in the formof incentivesshouldbegivenforcompletionofworkbeforetime.Incentivesshouldalsobegivenfornocutsinfibre.

Thesemeasureswill leadtofasterrollouts,betterutilizationoftalentandapredictablecashflowleadingtolessfinancialrisk.Someofthebestpracticesfromtheworldcaptureefficiencyandeaseinpaymentprocesses.PaymentpracticesinAustralia

• TheAustralianGovernmentisaleaderintermsofpaymenttimesandpractices.• MaterialNCCEspayonaverage97%ofcontractsvaluedunder$1millionwithin30calendar

days.• Reducing payment terms to 20 calendar days will improve cash flow for Government

tenderersandinfluenceindustrytoputdownwardpressureonpaymenttimes.• TheGovernmentisensuringbusinessesarepaidfasterthroughencouraginggreaterusageof

payment cards. The Government’s Facilitating Supplier Payment through Payment Card.Policy states that for eligible payments to suppliers valuedbelow$10,000, debit or creditcardsarethepreferredpaymentmechanism.

• LatePaymentofCommercialDebts(Interest)Bill2003providesforinteresttobeleviedonthelatepaymentofcommercialdebtsarisinginrelationtocontractsforthesupplyofgoodsandservices,andforrelatedpurposes.StatutoryinterestispayablebythepurchasertothesupplierforlatepaymentofqualifyingdebtinaccordancewiththetermsofthisAct.Aformulahasbeenconstitutedforcalculationofstatutoryinterest.

PaymentpracticesinUKUKhasmultiplepoliciesandactstosafeguardplayersagainstdelayedoruntimelypayments.

• Statutoryguidance ispresent forpublicsectorbuyersandsuppliersonpayingundisputed,validinvoiceswithin30daysdownthepublicsectorsupplychain.

• Publicsectorbuyersmustpayprimecontractors(Tier1suppliers)within30daysandmustensure that their prime contractor includes equivalent 30 days’ payment terms in anysubcontractsthroughthesupplychain.

• Central Government Prompt Payment policy: The government restated its long-standingpolicy commitment to pay 80% of undisputed and valid invoices within 5 days with theremainder paid in 30 days. Government departments are now required to report theirperformance against these payment targets on a quarterly basis on GOV.UK. These newreportingrequirementswereannouncedintheBudget2015.

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• ElectronicInvoicing:TheGovt.isworkingwithdepartmentstointroducedigitalsolutionstospeedupthepaymentprocesstoimproveefficiencyandsavemoneyonprocessingcosts.Itincludesleadingtherolloutofelectronicinvoicing(e-invoicing)acrossgovernment.SinceJune2015 all central government departments have been required to accept unstructured e-invoices(invoiceswhichcanbesentinbyemail)andarealsoworkingtowardsgreateruseofstructurede-invoices(invoicesthatcanbeprocessedautomatically)

• LatePaymentofCommercialDebts(interest)Act1998:Supplierscanclaimstatutoryinterestwhereapublicsectorbuyerhasn’tpaidanundisputedandvalidinvoicewithin30days(oranyearlierpaymentdateagreedinthecontract).

Theinterestthatcanbechargedifanotherbusinessislatepayingforgoodsoraserviceis‘statutoryinterest’-thisis8%plustheBankofEnglandbaserateforbusinesstobusinesstransactions.Thisstatutoryinterestcan’tbeclaimedifthere’sadifferentrateofinterestinacontract.

3.3 SynergizingwithotheressentialinfrastructuresThe procurement and deployment behaviours of infrastructure pipelines such as water,electricity,gasandthatofdatapipes(fibre)aresimilar.Synergiesintheprocurementandrolloutofallinfrastructure,includingfibre,canleadtooptimisationoftime,cost,andresources.

• SynergeticapproachforRightofWay(ROW)andnodalagency:Sinceallutilitiessuchaswater,electricity,gaspipes,andopticalfibrerequireROWpermissionsfordiggingandtrenching,acommonapproachforallutilitieswillmakeexecutionfasterandmoreefficient. The savings on civil cost can be utilised for other ‘Smart’ ICT features.Moreover,asinglenodalagencyforROWpermissionforallutilitieswillhelpeasetheprocessofrollingoutinfrastructure.Postapproval,anautomaticnotificationshouldbesentbytheROWNodalAgencytoalltheutilitiessothatthetimeandresourcesareusedeffectivelyaswellasefficiently.Further,thiswouldalsoreduceduplicityofworki.e.multiplediggingortrenchingofdifferentutilities(power,waterorgaspipelines)inthesamestretchofland.

• Synergised GIS system: A common GIS platform for on-going maintenance andmanagementofutilitieswillhelpcityplannersdesignutilityinfrastructure.Weshouldleveragetechnologytobuildapprovalprocessesanddatabasesalongwithaworkflowsystemforpermissions,reminders,disciplineddelivery,closefollow-upsandempowerallmanagersacrossallmilestones.ThenodalagencyforROWshouldbethecustodianof theutilitiesmapsince integrationofadatabase forall theutilities isofumpteenimportanceforasynergeticapproach.

• Dig-oncerule:Auniform‘dig-oncerule’mustbe introducedwhereallutilityplayersadopt a synergised approach and carry out the expansion of infrastructure in anefficient and effective manner. Currently local bodies charge in full for thereinstatement of road surface each time either fresh fibre is laid or the networkaccessed in event of a break, resulting inmultiple civil works. Civilworks constitutealmost 70% of the total cost of laying fibre, according to leading telecom service

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providers.Eliminatingthecurrent inefficiencies,willbringdownthecostofcreatingacityfibreinfrastructuresignificantly.

• Utilitycorridor:Settingupautilitycorridorcanoptimiserolloutandmanagementofallinfrastructure.Astrategytocollaboratewithallupcomingutilityandinfrastructureprojectswilloptimiseexecution.Design,planningandcoordinationisneedofthehourandcountriessuchasTokyo,Yokohama,Qataralreadyhaveutilityductsinplace.

• Buildingcodestoincludefibre:Amendingthebuildingcodestoincludefibrealongwithwater,electricity,andgaspipelineswillensurefastrolloutofmuchneededbroadbandaccess.

• Infrastructureoptimisation:Inareas,whereinfrastructureislackingintermsofroads,powerandwater,fibremustbelaidalongotherpipeswhenastretchoflandisbeingtrenched.Thiswillhelpachieveinfrastructureoptimisation.

Theseeffortswillleadtosignificantcost,resourceandtimeoptimisation.Forinstance,ifacityalreadyhasagoodductInfrastructureandfibrenetworkinplace,itwillenablefasterrolloutofSmartCityelementsandotherdigitalinitiativestoserveitscitizens.Citizenconveniencewillanaturaladvantage.Synergisticworkwillhelptoreduceinconveniencescausedtocitizensduetomultipleagenciesdiggingtheroadsurfacesrepeatedly.Unnecessarytrafficjams,anddangertolifeduetoopentrenchescanbeavoided.

3.4 SynergybetweenFibreandCoreCityInfrastructureIntegratedInfrastructuresetupwillmeanhigherROI(oneROIframeworkhere)

• BroadbandReadinessIndex:CanbeawaytoensurecitiesfurthertheDigitalinfrastructurewith parameters that include percentage of fiber densification, Ease of business in ROW,synergies with other utilities, security parameters for the physical infrastructure. Taxrationalisationtoprivatesectorthatensurereadiness,etc.

• DesignSynergies:TherealbenefitofthinkingfibreasanInfrastructureelementisbecauseofthesynergyindeployingthisservicealongwithotherservices

o Similarnetworkdesigns:Ontheground,designsofroads,powerandwaternetworkssignificantlymirrortheidealdesignforaubiquitousbroadbandnetwork.

o Largeoptionsettorideon:Accessdesignsforwater,powerandroadnetworksgivealargerangeofoptionstodesignaground-levelfibrenetworkthatcanleveragetheavailableROWandnetworkdesignsoftheseaccessinfrastructures

• Higher ROI with Lower Plastic Cost: Since the cost of dark fibre is less than 20% of thedeployment cost, which is majorly ROW and deployment service cost, an integrateddeploymentwillreducethecostoftheubiquitousbroadbandnetworktoone-fifthandenable

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amuchhigherRoIeven in low revenuesituations.Thiswillmake it reasonable toprovidemuchlowercostservicestoallunderprivilegedsectionsofthesociety.

• Faster,Low-disruptionDeployment:Integrateddeploymentwillalsoensurethatthereisspeedierimplementationandmuchlowerdisruptioninthelifeofcitizens

• DeployFiber,notemptyplasticduct-Somecitieshavetrieddeployedmultipleemptyplasticductsinthegroundwiththepresumptionthatcanbeusedforfibredeploymentlater.Itisironicalthatthecostoftheseplasticductsismorethanthecostofdeployingfibredirectly.Also,bydeployingfibreandductsatdifferenttimeshaveprovedtobedifficult.Mostofthetimes,theseductshavebeenun-usableandbeenasharewasteofbotheconomicresourcesaswellaspoorfortheenvironment.

3.5 NetworkplanningspecialistaspartofcityplanningNetworkdesignisaspecialisedskill,andhavinganetworkdesignspecialistonthecoreSmartCityplanningteamwillbeofimmensevaluefordesigningcitiesofthefuture.Betternetworkdesignandmanagementcanhelpoptimiseallcityresources.Networkdesigncanensurethatwhenallutilitiesarenetworked,betterdailymanagementofresourcessuchaswaterandelectricity,comestandardwiththenetworkdesign.Citizenservicessuchase-governance,healthcare,educationandothercloud-basedservicescanalsoreachallnooksandcornersofcities.

4. OpticalFibredeployments

4.1 GlobalOpticalfibredeploymentsAccordingtothereport“FiberOpticsMarketbyCable–GlobalForecastto2021”,theopticalfibercablemarketisanticipatetogrowataCAGRofover9.8%during2016-2021.Theincreasingdemandforcloudcomputing,datatransfer&storage,andIoTisdrivingtheuseofInternet,whichisfurtherenhancingthefiberopticcablemarket,asitactsasthebackbonefordatatransmission.Moreover,growingtechnologicaladvancements,increaseinnumberofconnecteddevicesanddatacentersareexpected to positively influence global optical fiber cable market. In addition, next generationtechnologies suchas LTEandFTTx,which require lastmile connectivity, isexpected topropel thedemandforopticalfibercablesinthecomingyears.AllthesefactorshaveledtoanincreaseinInternetusers,whichinturnhasledtothehigherusageofopticalfibercabletotransferinformationovertheInternet,thusdrivingthefiberopticsmarket.

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Figure3:GlobalOpticalFibrecabledemandSource:StatistaSubmarine optical fiber cables are undersea cables used for carrying data across interconnectednetworksbetweencontinents.Withtheadvancementsoftechnology,mostofthesubmarineopticalfibercablesthatcurrentlyformthebackboneoftheInternetconnecttheU.S.toEuropeandAsiabycrossing theAtlantic or Pacific oceans. Instead, there is a proposal for deployment of Trans-polarsubmarinecablesysteminArcticOcean.LayinganunderseafiberopticcableismeanttoconnectAsiaand Europe by crossing the Arctic Circle – the shortest practical distance yet for Internet signalstraveling between the two continents. According to the report by Global Industry Analysts (GIA),cumulative installations of submarine optical fiber cables globally are projected to reach 2millionkilometresby2020,drivenbythegrowingdemandforfiberbroadbandandtheensuingdeploymentoffiberopticcablesintheInternetbackbone.Presently,submarineopticalfibercablestransmit100%oftheinternationalInternettraffic,andmorethan95%oftheworld’scombineddataandvoicetraffic.

Opticalfibercableisbeingcaughtupintheglobalmovetobroadbandinthenearfuture.Thenextgeneration of high bandwidth applications, along with the proliferation of connected devices, isexpectedtorequirefasterandhigherbandwidthnetworkswhichwillrequiretheuseofmultimodefibercablefordatatransfer.ThisgrowthintheFTTxnetworksinturnisexpectedtodrivethefiberopticsmarket.FutureMarketInsights(FMI)forecaststheglobalfibertothehome(FTTH)market’svalue will grow from $9.5 billion in 2017 to more than $37 billion by the end of 2027, a 14.4%compoundannualgrowthrate(CAGR).IntheleadingAsianeconomies,morethan44%ofallhomesand buildings are already directly connected to the fiber optic cable network; in North Americapenetrationis8.4%,inEurope5.6%.

4.2 Indiavis-à-visothercountries

• India’shighrateof4Gexpansionandreadinessfor5Grollout,thereisanincreasingneedforfiberdeploymenttosupportreliable,highspeedconnectivity.

• Lessthan25%oftowersarefiberizedascomparedto70-80%inChina&Korea.

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• Leading service providers have begun investments in deploying fiber connectivity withsignificantnon-spectrumCapex towardsbackhaul& lastmileOFC totowers inaddition tonext-genRANupgrades.

• Fiberization curve in India’s towerMarket is expected to rise to 70%by FY20, increaseoffiberizedtowersfrom90,000toabout333,000.

• InIndia,FTTHisataverynascentstageascomparedtoothercountrieswithpenetrationatmere1.25mnconnections.

• Oneof themajor serviceproviders in Indiaare introducing low-costFTTHplanswhichareexpectedtocreateincrementaldemands.

• With growing penetration of cloud computing, smart grids, e-learning, e-Health & e-governance services in India, concurrent FTTHmarket growth is expected tomulti-foldby2025.

Figure4:RateoffiberizationacrosscountriesSource:Deloitte

Figure4:FTTHpenetrationacrossvariouscountriesSource:Deloitte

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4.3 ChallengesfacedbyprivatesectorsinthedeploymentofOpticalfibresinIndia

AlthoughFTTHsegmentoffersseveralopportunities,theroll-outbytheserviceprovidersinIndiahasbeenslowingowingtoseveralchallengesinthedeployment:

a. DeploymentChallenges:

• Policysupportintermsofapprovalsandpermissionsandneedforpolicieslike“Digonce”

• Lackofavailabilityofskilledworkforce.

• IncorrectinterpretationoftheGazetteNotificationof2016onRoWprocessbydifferentstateandlocalmunicipalbodiesresultingincostvariancesanddelaysorlackofSLAsfortimeboundRoWdecisions.

b. FinancialChallenges:

• BurdenofRoWchargeswhichrangefromINR1lakh-50lakhperkmorlayingfibre.

• CostoftherelatedCustomerPremiseEquipment(CPE)andOpticalLineTerminal(ONT).

• ExistingburdenofdebtsonTelcostakentofinancespectrumacquisitions

c. DemandChallenges:

• AvailabilityofhighspeedwirelessconnectivityleadingtodeclineinvaluepropositionofFTTH.

• LackofrelevantapplicationsandcontenttosupportbusinesscaseforFTTH.

• Lowdemandofbroadbandandlackofawarenessintheruralsegment.

4.4 PolicyandRegulationsRecommendations

Policies and Regulations have a direct impact on commercialization and service provision. ThesuggestionsthatfollowareintendedtohaveclearandsharedunderstandingofFiberdeploymentpoliciesandregulationsinordertoaligntheagendasofoperators,industries,theregulator,policymakersandotherstakeholders.a.DraftPolicyFrameworktoSupportFTTHdeployment:

• Uniformpolicyaroundestablishmentofabovegroundandbelowgroundinfrastructurei.e.telecom

towersandOFC;coveringpermissionsandapprovalprocessesacrossStates/localbodiestimebound

approvals,nominalone-timechargesandsinglewindowclearancemechanism.

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i. Establishment of the critical infrastructure in India is accompanied by challenges faced in the

installationoftowersandextensionofOFCtorequiredinstallations,RoWpermissionandcharges,in-

buildingaccessetc.Thesechallengeslargelystemfromfragmentedandnon-uniformpoliciesadopted

byvariousstatesandlocalbodies.TheGazetteNotificationonRoWissuedbyGovernmentin2016,

wasonesuchefforttobringoutuniformapproachforgrantingRoWpermissionsforaboveandbelow

groundtelecominfrastructure.ThereisanurgentneedforanearlyadoptionoftheseGazettedRoW

Rules tobe integrated into theRoWpoliciesof the statesand localbodiesand to furtheractuate

effortstowardsestablishmentofuniformrulesaroundinstallationoftelecomtowersandOFCand

relatedoutdoorplant.

ii. SincetheNextgenerationservicesenvisagesthedeliveryof10Gbpsspeed,lessthan1mslatencyand

90%reductioninnetworkenergyutilisation,thiswillrequirethenextroundoftelecominfrastructure

investmentsacrosstheglobe.Thegrowthoffiberwillbefuelledbythesharphikeinconsumerdata

andtheproliferationofM2M/IoTdevices.ITUestimatesthemarketforIoTdeviceswillresultinover

USD1.7trillioninvalueaddedtotheglobaleconomyby2019.Inviewofthesedevelopments,ITU

expectsthatinvestmentsonfibreinfrastructurewillsurpass$144.2billionduring2014–2019.The

fact that the network will have to support bursty data from emerging applications like Video on

Demand(VoD),IoT,SmartCities,andthelikealsomakesreliablebackhaulacriticalrequirement.In

severalmarkets,operatorsaredependentonOFCbackhaul.Sincefibreisessentialforbothwireline

andwirelessnetworks,therearegreaterlevelsofconfidenceinfibreinvestment.5Gtechnologywill

alsorequireamulti-foldincreaseinsmallcellsdeployment,witheachsmallcellhavingbackhaulon

fibre.WeinIndiaarewoefullyinadequateintermsofOFCdensitybothinurbanandruralareasand

aspecial focus forOFCdensification ina timeboundmanner isessential for5Gdeployments.We

advocatea“FibertotheTower”policyregime.Thepercentageoftowerbackhaulonfibreforthe

operatorswillneedtoincreasesignificantlyfrom20%to70-80%levels.

iii. Theregulatorybottlenecksinrolling–outnewsites/digitalinfrastructuremustbeaddressedbythe

Governmenttoenableswiftnetworkdeploymentsandmakeultra-highspeedbroadbandarealityin

India.Further,itisnecessarythatthescopeofsharingisbroadenedandthetelecominfrastructureis

labeled as ‘Common Digital Infrastructure’ with no distinction between passive and active

componentsinthenetwork.Onewaytoboosttheroll-outoffiberinfrastructureisbyextendingthe

benefitsof‘InfrastructureStatus’accordedtotheindustryintheyear2012.Thebenefitsofthestatus

whichalreadyhavebeenextendedtosectorslikeroads,railwaysandaviationshouldalsobeextended

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tothetelecomsector.Thiswillensureeasieraccesstocapitalatreducedfinancialcost,thusmaking

iteasiertoroll-outdigitalinfrastructure.

iv. The Government should also consider announcing dedicated spending on Information and

Communication Technology (ICT) sector like other sectors such as education, health, etc. in their

annualbudgets.AfixedspendingbytheGovernmentonDigitalinfrastructurewillbolsterthedigital

eco-systeminthecountryandhelpbridgethedigitaldividebyenhancingcoverageandcapacity.The

government should make provisions with special focus on investment and financial incentives

favorabletodevelopmentoftelecomecosystemforupcomingtechnologiesviz.5G,IoT,etc.

v. RobustInfrastructureisattheforefrontofthedeployingtelecominfrastructurewhichisthesupport

systemforprovisioningoftelecomservices.The‘sharingmodel’practicedbytheIP-Iwillaccelerate

the adoption of broadband services in the country. Under the ‘Sharing Model’, the telecom

infrastructureissharedonanon–discriminatorybasiswiththeTSPsleadingtosavingsincapex,faster

go-to-markettime,positiveimpactonenvironment,avoidssiteduplicationandimprovesaesthetics.

Theconceptof‘Towersharing’createdastrongincentiveinIndianTelecommarket.

vi. Aesthetics:Withaneed todeploynew towersandenable sitedensification for5Gnetworks, the

appearanceoftheinfrastructure,particularlyatstreetfurniturelevelwillbeimportant.Asbuilding

permitsbecomemoredifficulttoachieve,aestheticswillbeanessentialdesignparameter.IP1swill

requiretoworkwithlocalbodiestoinstallaestheticallydesignedinfrastructuretobeintegratedin

existinglandscape.

• Fasttrackstreamlined,automatedandonlinepaperlessapprovalprocesswhichcanhelpreduce

executionchallengeswithrespecttoRoWapplicationsandpermissions.

ThecurrentprocessofRoWapprovalat thestateand localbody level requiresmultipleapprovals

fromvariety of agencies at eachmunicipality/local body levelmaking it operationally challenging.

Moreover, there are challenges such as Multiple NOCs (No Objection Certificates), Multiple

Documents,MultipleLeviesandHighAdministrativeChargeswhichwouldhavetobeaddressedon

priority. Further, the present rules doesn’t allow small cells/fiber to be laid using existing street

furnituresuchaselectricpoles,busstands,postboxes,advertisementapparatusetc.duetovarious

restrictionsimposedbylocalbodieslikeMunicipalcorporationsetc.ontheDiscoms.Discomsarenot

allowed to generate commercial revenues using the existing and planned city/town public

infrastructure(thatincludesevencommercialhoardingsetc.).Werecommendbetterefficienciesand

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reduction of human touchpoints in execution, documentation especially in Govt. deployments

through:-

i. Reductioninnumberofoperationalapprovals

ii. Stringentvendorselectioncriteria

iii. FocusonoperatingfromstandardsandstrongSLAs

iv. Efficientutilizationoftechnologyforapprovals

v. Technologysupportedaudits

vi. DeemedApprovals

vii. Nominalcharges

• Makingavailableexistingandnewmunicipal infrastructure (fore.g. street furniture) for site

densification (small cell deployments/telecom infrastructure installation) –Need Pan- India

permissiontoallowTSPsand(IPs)tolayFiber/SmallCellsusingtheexistingstreetfurniture.

i. Integrate an architectural/ design requirement in tenders for all electricity poles being

changedfromexistingtoLEDpowertohaveasmallcellintegratedinthedesignofthepole.

ii. Fiberconnectivityforanynewbuildingbemadeintegraltoallarchitecturalapprovalsfor

newbuildings.

iii. Non-exclusiverights tousemunicipal infrastructure forsmallcells/telecom infrastructure

installationbytheIPsforenhancingstreetlevelcoverage.

iv. DevelopingBusinessmodelsforadoptionbyStateGovernment,MunicipalCorporationsand

serviceproviders/infrastructureproviders.

v. Availabilityofgovernmentlandandbuildingstodeploytelecominfrastructure

5. Governance

5.1 SuggestedRegulatoryframework

• RegulatoryFrameworktoSupportOpticalFiberDeployment:RegulatoryframeworksneedtosupporttheOpticalFiberDeploymentviz.

1. Simplified&flatnetworkarchitectureacrosscountry.Simplify network management tasks and minimise human intervention and labour in diagnosingcomplex network problems and then determining corresponding reactive or pro-active tactics toresolveexistingorevenavoidpotentialissues.RepresentativeusecasesincludeSelf-healingagainst

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networkfailuresorvulnerabilitiesforimprovedreliability,Self-protectionagainstcyber-attackthreatsforimprovedsecurity,andSelf-optimizationagainstnetworkconstraintsforimprovedusers’QoE.

2. FibreOpticNetwork-Tobuildahighqualitybroadbandnetwork,OFCdensityhastobeimmenselyimproved.

TomeetthevisionandmissionforDigitalIndia,theinfrastructureshouldmeetfollowingobjectives:

i. Meetthecapacityrequirementsforthenext20years.ii. Meetglobalstandardsonreliabilityof99.999percent(59s)iii. EnsurecomprehensivecoverageoftheUrban,Semi-urbanandRural,areas.StatesMunicipalitiesand

localbodiestocaterformeetingrequirementsof“broadbandondemand”planforthisavailabilityanduniformgrowth.

iv. Meetcurrentrequirementandenablefutureexpansionofaccesstoeverybuildingandhome.v. Ensureminimuminconveniencetocitizensduringinitialbuildoutandduringoperations.

Thiswillrequirethefollowing:

a. HigherFiberCapacitysufficientfornext20years.

b. FibershouldbeFullyArmoredandFullyProtected.

c. AccesstoPoles&Conduits

d. AdheretoprocurementanddeploymentstandardssuchasGISmapping,‘callbeforeyoudig’and“digonce” policy. Create a broad-based Centrally Held Guidelines for deployment of fundamentalinfrastructure,asnextgenerationbroadbandnetworkswillrequiredensefibernetworkinfrastructurebothintheaccessandcorenetworks.

e. Theworldisbracingitselfforthedatarevolutionwithhighcountfiberofthe1000sandismoving

towardsultra-highcountfiberover3000.Serviceprovidersmustbeincentivisedtolayhighercountfiberwhichtouches1000plus.

f. CentrallyHeldGuidelinesforFibreorasingleGuidelines/StandardsdocumentmustresidewiththeMinistryofCommunicationstoensurebenchmarkedprocurementofqualityfibreanddeploymentstandards for streamlined, interoperable, andubiquitous connectivity across thenation. Since thefibrei-waysplayanarterialroleintheinfrastructure,focusonfutureproofedfibrestandardsmustevolve.

g. High count fiber with Multi-tube single jacket ribbon optical fiber cable that combines robustperformanceforductordirectburiedinstallations,withtheproductivityofhigh-countmassfusionsplicing.

h. RibbonTechnologyutilisedinhigh-fibercountcablesoffersbetterfibermanagementandhandlingcapabilities for cable-installers. Ribbon in loose-tube helps the installer to manage the task ofaccuratelyidentifyinghundredsoffiberinone-closure.Ribboninaloose-tubedesignallowsforaside-by-sideorientationforfiberswhichhelpsinmassfusionsplicing-Thiscapabilitywillallowtremendoussavingsintimeandlabourcosts

i. Neutralfiberinfrastructureprovider,operationsanduptime.

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i) Addressfiberizationforfuturedemand.Mostcarrierswouldliketodeploydoubleortriplethe

amountof fiber currentlyneeded.Theymightwant to leverage right-of-way to installdark(unused) fiberwith the possible intention of leasing it in anticipation of future demand.ProminentCATVoperatorsinIndia,othersinEurope,Middle-Eastarelookingforwardtowards1000+fibercountopticalfibercables

ii) forlayingoutatleast96pairoffibernetworkacrossIndia–tobeprovidedonsharedbasistoalloperators

iii) deploymentsalongwithotherutilities suchasgas,oilpipelines,power, railway line&statehighwaysThereisaNeedforaNationalFibrePlanto:

- Reducecost&timeforfiberdeploymentsacrossthecountry.- Readinessinnexttwotothreeyears:

o Unbundling&sharingoffiberamongoperatorsincludingBSNL/MTNLo MandatefiberisationofallbuildingsbyinclusionofthisrequirementintheNationalBuilding

Code.o SharingofcommontelecomInfrastructure–bothtowersandOFC

5.2 RoleofSteeringcommittee:An empowered steering committee should be put into place for expediting the entire lifecycle ofpaymenttorolloutofinfrastructure.Theheadofthesteeringcommitteeshouldbeempoweredtobethesinglepointofcontactfromthegovtandmakedecisionsforsmoothandon-timedeliveryofthegovernmentprojects.TheheadoftheSteeringCommitteeshouldbealsobeaccountableforanydelays(relatedtoRoWpermissions,approvalsandpayments)onpartofthegovernment.

6. Conclusion

FibreasCriticalInfrastructurecanreallyspeedupbenefitstocitizenswhichwillnothappenwithoutaconcertedeffortfromtheGovernmentandpolicymakers.WebelievethetimehascometoensurethatpoliciesaredraftedthatenableacollaborativeapproachbetweendeploymentorganizationsandenabletheGovernmenttodelivercitizenservicesfasterandtomonetizeaworld-classinfrastructurethatiscreatedintheprocess.TocatertotherequirementofthedemandofhighspeedconnectivityandtogivewayforthemosttalkedabouttechnologiessuchasInternetofThings(IoT),Block-chain,SmartHomesandAutonomousvehicles, Indianeedstourgentlyaccordmore impetustodeploymentoffiber.Government’sFibreFirst initiative is, therefore,amostwelcomestep& the time foraction isnow.Wehope that theproposed TRAI Consultation & the subsequent recommendations will help address the issuespertainingtothefibrecablesandprovideIndiathefibrebaseitdesperatelyneeds.

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