On Wednesday, the government granted permission for the installation of billions of public Wi-Fi access points, and anyone, from an individual in a residential area (with commercial broadband connection) to the owner of a kirana shop in your neighborhood or a tea shop vendor can provide the facility.
The Union Cabinet-approved Wi-Fi Public Access Network Interface (WANI) is considered as revolutionary as the PCO movement of the 1990s that enabled millions of people to have access to simple and seamless public telephone connectivity. problems at minimal cost. And the method of connecting to a public Wi-Fi network will be as easy as signing up for a WANI-authorized app on your phone.
Payments for use can range from a few rupees (less than 10 rupees for a small use) and will be deducted from a wallet that loads for that purpose, something similar to the UPI payment network. At one point in time, it was also understood that companies like Google and Facebook were looking at the public Wi-Fi business, although the growth of mobile data connectivity in India and cheap rates after the launch of Reliance Jio have put off their spirits.
Only one-time registration with any Wi-Fi provider will be required, and thereafter, no re-registration or mandatory authentication will be required when accessing the WANI network anywhere in the country. It is interoperable, making it seamless and seamless for users, who may require faster networks when watching heavy content such as videos, movies, or sports.
The idea of setting up public Wi-Fi access points was recommended by telecom regulator Trai a few years ago to boost digital connectivity, while also providing a source of income for people in smaller cities and rural areas. “The cabinet today approved the WANI project recommended by Trai. It will create millions of interoperable Wi-Fi access points in the country and democratize content distribution and broadband access to millions at affordable rates. This will be the UPI of connectivity services, ”said RS Sharma, the former president of Trai under whose mandate the proposal was discussed.
At Trai’s suggestion, the government approved a structure that will lead to the creation of public data office aggregators (PDOAs) at the top, which will then recruit the public data offices or PDOs (such as kirana shops or individual households) to provide public Wi-Fi. To make a proper business case, the government has decided that no license fee will be charged to provide broadband Internet over public Wi-Fi networks. Minister of Telecommunications and IT Ravi Shankar Prasad He said the government expects thousands of public Wi-Fi hotspots to proliferate in cities, especially rural and semi-urban areas, giving new impetus to digital connectivity.
The move is expected to ease the burden on widespread telecom networks, which are generally criticized for poor quality of services. The Wi-Fi access points will have high-speed fiber optics as the backbone of connectivity, while using last-mile free spectrum to connect with users. Therefore, they will not add any burden to the existing telecommunications spectrum network, but will complement the infrastructure.
To make the system robust and ensure that unwanted items stay out, the government has stipulated that PDOAs and app providers will need to register with the telecommunications department through the online registration portal.
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