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Broadband connectivity key to rural development

Both Solar energy and connectivity will be the powerhouses to jumpstart the rural socio-economic development to the next level. While the Solar energy will be the vehicle to deliver a “basic need” (of electricity) for the rural population, the broadband connectivity will be key “enabler” for the socio-economic development in rural areas.

The availability of a robust and reliable broadband connectivity is most critical for the successful implementation of some of the key social sector schemes and programmes in rural areas by the Central and State governments on e-governance, education, health, employment and financial inclusion.

The benefits of the broadband connectivity to the rural population are immense with the convergence of voice, data and video. We will have the children studying in e-classes with state of the art audio-visual content and able guidance of better quality instructors from centralised locations (district/ state headquarters), assisted by local teachers and guides who will also learn in the process. The required information will be available at the click of the button, where today getting a birth certificate may take days, sometimes weeks. The better G2C (Government to Citizens) and C2B (Citizen to Business) interactions will enable better services and socio-economic opportunities for the rural people. Internet connectivity is imperative for the various financial reach initiatives – whether para-banking or micro-financing or the Jan Dhan Yojana.

As the time and cost are two critical elements for the implementation, the key question is how we can rollout the broadband connectivity to the rural areas in the quickest and most cost-effective manner. The government is highly dependent on the speedy implementation of broadband connectivity for the success of its ‘marquee’ Digital India programme. Slow progress in laying out the broadband connectivity will derail many of these programmes – so, the (implementation) time is of critical essence here. Similarly, with the current cost estimates for the rural broadband project to be around Rs. 30,000 crores, cost-effectiveness of the implementation will be very important for a developing economy like us – with a spate of government projects waiting in the pipeline for financial go-ahead.

The time and cost of the project will be primarily dependent on the technology chosen for providing the broadband connectivity. Among the various options, or technology, available to us – namely, Digital Subscriber Lines (DSL), Cable modem, Optical fibre cable (OFC) and wireless – the broadband connectivity is being currently implemented through the Optical fibre network, including the last-mile connectivity. When the decision on the technology was taken 5-6 years back, optical fibre technology was certainly the best solution – however, since then, wireless technology has made remarkable progress, particularly on the data communications front which is the crux of broadband connectivity.

Secondly, rolling out a fibre based network will always be a slow process, primarily driven by the logistical and civil work challenges involved. Basically, laying out an optical fibre network involves five stages – approval (right of way), digging, ducting,


 



Source: http://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/broadband-connectivity-key-to-rural-development/

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