A strong will in itself to implement cashless transactions may not be sufficient. It has to be supplemented with proper infrastructure which boasts of excellent internet services in rural areas which sadly is not seen in areas which had hitherto constituted undivided Adilabad district.
Lack of broadband and cell services in many villages is already causing problem in distribution of social welfare pensions through the system of biometric identification of beneficiaries. For example, the Adivasi villages of Chichdhari Khanapur village in Adilabad mandal go to Indervelli mandal headquarter, at a distance of 10 km., in search of mobile signal to give their finger print impressions on the biometric machines.
Though almost all mandal headquarters are connected with broadband services of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited, there is no internet for days at a stretch in many of these villages. Banking services are constantly hit in mandal headquarters like Sirpur (U), Jainoor, Kerameri, Asifabad, Wankidi, Sirpur (T), Koutala, Bejjur, Dahegaon, to name a few.
As per the 2011 Census, the cumulative population of Adilabad, Kumram Bheem Asifabad, Mancherial and Nirmal districts is nearly 28 lakh and over 70 per cent of it lives in rural areas. Many of the over 1,600 villages are spread over the geographical area of 16,000 sq km which encapsulates a vast hilly terrain which makes provision of internet-based services extremely difficult. Though almost all mobile service providers operate in the rural areas of these districts, it the BSNL which has the greatest reach.
“We operate 345 towers dotting the terrain of which 62, mostly in urban centres, provide 3G services essential for data transfer,” disclosed BSNL Adilabad Deputy General Manager S. Nagi Reddy. “Our services are being constantly disturbed owing to uprooting of our underground cables in construction work associated with Mission Bhagiratha and road widening in the rural areas,” pointed out in-charge General Manager M.A. Siddiqui.
“We are in the process of installing 3G equipment at all mandal headquarters in these districts,” he added trying to paint a rosy picture.
