The state-owned Tamil Nadu Arasu Cable TV Corporation Limited (TACTV) will provide broadband and internet services at cheaper rate, Chief Minister Jayalalithaa told the Assembly on Monday.
Making a series of announcements to give impetus to information technology-driven public services, the Chief Minister said TACTV that had been offering cable TV services at a rate of Rs. 70 per month, would work with broadband licence holders.
Ms. Jayalalithaa also announced construction of a new building at a cost of Rs. 40 crore for the Tamil Nadu State Data Centre to widen its services to other government departments.
The Data Centre has been offering services to 15 government departments including commercial taxes department, Chennai Corporation and Metro Rail.
“At present the Centre does not have adequate infrastructure. A 5000 sq feet building with 40 racks will be constructed for it,” she said. The Chief Minister said a Near Line Disaster Recovery Centre would be set up at a cost of Rs five crore.
“Natural disasters continued to pose a challenge to the Data Centre. So there is a need to keep the data in a centre other than Disaster Recovery Centre in the city. The Near Line Disaster Recovery Centre will fulfill the purpose,” Ms. Jayalalithaa said.
The state government has already distributed 20 lakh laptops to students and it has now decided to offer cloud services and web-hosting services at a cheaper rate to further the entrepreneurship and creative skills of the youth. The project cost will be Rs 50 lakh.
Ms Jayalalithaa said the Tamil Virtual Academy would create an internet encyclopedia to facilitate interaction and sharing of knowledge on the greatness of the Tamil language and the achievements made in the language.
