Enabling last mile connectivity, 2.9 lac Gram Panchayats will access internet through WiFi services

NewsBharati    12-Jun-2018
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New Delhi, June 12: Enabling last mile connectivity, people residing in about 5,000 villages will be able to access the internet through Wi-Fi services under the sponsorship of Common Service Centers project of Wi-Fi choupals.

Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, Piyush Goyal announced the launch under its W-Fi choupal project on Monday. The target is to have Wi-Fi choupals in all 2.5 lakh gram panchayat. The CSC acts like an addition to the optical fiber network under BharatNet, which is connecting 2.5 lakh gram panchayats through broadband.

Both the projects are part of an ambitious plan of connecting India digitally. Till now, about 7-8 villages have been connected digitally through a set of WiFi hotspots. Addressing around 3,000 village level entrepreneurs (VLE) from across the country IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said: "All Wi-Fi choupals will become knowledge centers in India. In the age of technology, information is power. Now, no villager should be able to go to cities for the services, as the same can be availed through CSCs."

 

CSC has also tied up with IRCTC for booking of railway tickets. This will enable people in rural areas and villages to book tickets through CSC rather than going to the booking centers mainly located in cities, according to a senior official.

Currently, 7,000-gram panchayats have Wi-Fi infrastructure. CSC is in the process of expanding this infrastructure in additional gram panchayats of the country. Wi-Fi choupal also enables a village level entrepreneur to expand his/her scope of services besides giving employment opportunities to a few people.

CSC, an important part of the government's Digital India initiative, functions as a single access point for delivery of services electronically, including passport and Aadhaar enrollment. It also enables people to access government services such as submission of various forms and bills online and other state government services.