India's Cabinet has approved a long-mooted proposal to have state-owned operator BSNL deploy more mobile towers in areas affected by Naxalite communist guerilla groups.
The government has agreed to fund the 32.1 billion rupee ($529.9 million) project to build 1,836 new BTS towers in affected areas, Press Trust of Indiasaid.
Security forces and the civilian population in the areas have been asking for improved connectivity to help deal with Naxalite attacks.
There have already been 363 towers deployed under the project, and their construction will be subsidised out of India's universal services obligation fund.
India's Ministry of Home Affairs has been seeking to have more towers built in the affected areas since 2010. Last year, a project to install towers at 2,199 locations was approved following a particularly severe Naxal attack that killed 27 people.
But the project died in limbo due to the differences between the funding allocated by the previous government and actual bids for the tenders.