In the build up to the assembly elections, Common Service Centres (CSC), a Government of India initiative was announced recently to launch 5,000 Public Data Offices (PDOs) in West Bengal under the CSC PM-Wani Scheme.
It bears recall that NCCE, an arm of the apex cooperative body NCUI is partnering with the govt of India in preparing an army of trained cooperators who would manage the affairs of multi-purpose District Co-op Societies known as VLEs.
The objective of PDOs is to sell the internet services among the villagers through Village Level Entrepreneurs spread in different parts of the country. It is a move towards Digital India, a dream of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
i2e1 launches PDO Wi-Fi access points across India under PM-Wani initiative; 50Mbps unlimited internet at Rs. 5 per day
As part of the Government of India’s PM-WANI initiative, i2e1, a Delhi-based startup, has announced the launch of Public Data Offices (PDO) across India. They are public Wi-Fi-enabled internet booths that can provide broadband connections to their subscribers.
The Government of India launched this initiative with the goal of providing cheap and reliable internet access to millions in India, enabling them to learn new skills and receive an education. Each PDO will be designed to function similarly to PCO (Public Communication Office) booths.
PM- WANI is the right tool to achieve the objectives of creating millions of inter-operable Wi-Fi Hotspots in India : Consumer Voice Advisor
It took almost seven years after the internet was first thrown open to the public in 1995 to reach 1 percent of India’s population, and another nine years for this figure to cross 10 percent.
Dec 18, 2020 10:29:50 IST
The Union Cabinet, on 9 December, approved the establishment of public Wi-Fi networks across the country. It was really heartening to see that most of the suggestions given (by the writer of this column) to the TRAI during the consultation process initiated in 2016, were heeded. Public WiFi will be provided through Public Data Offices (PDOs) via a Central government scheme called the Prime Minister’s Wi-Fi Access Network Interface (PM-WANI).
Updated Dec 16, 2020 | 15:04 IST
The next revolution in connectivity necessitates reliable and cheap internet for the masses so that India can leapfrog from the existing digital divide, which has social and economic implications. Representational image | Photo Credit: iStock Images
Key Highlights
It is anticipated that PM-WANI will be business-friendly and complement the government’s ease of doing business initiatives
Besides generating employment, such a public Wi-Fi network will boost disposable incomes of small and medium entrepreneurs
Crucially, there is no license fee for providing broadband internet services
Last week the Union cabinet approved a framework to usher in a “massive Wi-Fi revolution in the country”, in the words of Union Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, by accelerating the proliferation of broadband internet services via a public Wi-Fi network.
PM-WANI has the potential to revolutionise the way India accesses the internet
Without good execution, PM-WANI is merely an exciting concept on paper. However, if done right, PM-WANI will give a fillip to small businesses. Updated: December 16, 2020 9:23:25 am
There are two dimensions along which PM-WANI has broken away from the past regulatory and technology.
Build for a billion. That has been the vision behind India’s successful innovations, such as Aadhaar or UPI. These solutions had to be frugal, or the people could not afford them; interoperable, so competition could be harnessed to create value for the consumer; and easy to roll out, for the benefits to quickly reach our countrymen in the remotest areas.