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Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday said that though urban areas in the country are well connected, telecommunications connectivity in rural areas is still a concern.
“With a rural tele-density of just over 40 per cent, there are millions of people in our rural economy whose lives still remain untouched by the telecom revolution. And, this is a challenge that should worry all of us and we must have determination to grapple with it effectively,” Singh said on the inauguration of India Telecom 2013 conference here.
Internet connectivity
He said this deficit is further magnified when it comes to Internet connectivity. “On a per capita basis, the usage of the Internet is quite low in India. Both the availability and the reliability of Internet services outside the major cities leave much to be desired,” he said.
He said the transformative power of the Internet is clearly visible in the lives of a large number of people in India and services like travel bookings, banking, shopping and education are increasingly being delivered through the Internet.
Rural-urban divide
Rapid advances in technology are also resulting in newer uses of this medium, he said, adding that all this points to the urgent need for measures to bridge the rural-urban divide in the area of telecommunications.
“This divide should not become a source of added disparity in our society. On the contrary, we should leverage the immense potential of the telecommunications to reduce the socio-economic disparities that presently exist in our country,” the Prime Minister said.
Financial inclusion
He said that this can be done in a variety of ways. For example, by combining a mobile phone with mobile banking, one can achieve the objective of financial inclusion at a very low cost.
“The Reserve Bank of India is already working on making this possible using the Aadhaar identity framework. Similarly, combining a computer with 3G connectivity can revolutionise the delivery of education,” he added.
USO Fund
Singh said a scheme to extend financial support from the Universal Service Obligation (USO) Fund for providing mobile communication services in 56,000 uncovered villages of the country is already on the anvil.
“This scheme will give priority to the uncovered villages of the North Eastern sector,” he said.
“We have also approved a scheme for installing mobile towers at about 2,200 locations in the areas affected by Left Wing Extremism at an estimated cost of about Rs 3,000 crore. This too will be financed by the USO Fund,” he added.
>ronendrasingh.s@thehindu.co.in
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