Browsing the Internet on the move will no longer be a rich man’s luxury.
In what is considered a baby step in doing away with the digital divide, BSNL in association with Kochi Corporation and Quadgen Wireless Solutions has launched the much awaited Wi-Fi Hot Spot project turning 10 major locations in the city Wi-Fi enabled.
Corporation office, Kaloor bus stand, High Court, Subhash Park, Edappally junction, Marine Drive, Mattancherry, Fort Kochi, district court, and Durbar Hall will now be Wi-Fi spots with connectivity available within 300-metre radius. The launch coincides with Centre’s decision to observe digital week.
“We will expand the service to more locations in keeping with the demand,” a jubilant Mayor Tony Chammany said
Mr. Chammany released the vouchers to avail of the service. A potential user is required to register using the mobile number, name and mail id on which a One Time Password would be sent to the registered number.
“A registered user would be allocated complimentary browsing for one-and-a-half hour in a month not exceeding 30 minutes at a time. Once the complimentary allocation is exhausted, the user would have to activate voucher through net banking or using the ATM card.
Vouchers of Rs. 30 and Rs. 50 have been launched for browsing for 30 minutes and one hour respectively after the complimentary browsing. Besides, coupons for Rs. 150 have been launched for unlimited browsing throughout a day.
“The service is in tune with the spirit of Right to Internet campaign going across the globe,” said Pranav Kumar Suresh, CEO, Startup Village.
The service elevates Kochi to the list of elite cities with Wi-Fi connectivity. BSNL has assured a speed of 8mbps with a dynamic allocation put in place to facilitate smooth browsing despite the increase in user density.
While BSNL has provided network backup, the hardware part has been managed by Quadgen Wireless Solutions, which has been entrusted with the maintenance of the service.
