Telephone Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) member Anil Kaushal said on Thursday that the Internet of Things (IoT) was poised to revolutionise person-to-person and machine-to-machine communication system, improving the quality of living manifold. In an exclusive interview to The Hindu here, Mr. Kaushal said the awareness level in the country was on par with the U.S. and other advanced nations. Yet, the use of Internet had to reach more number of people, he observed.
Free data
“Of the 1.2 billion mobile phone users, only 300 million are availing of the data facility. We have recommended to the government to provide free data use facility, mainly in the rural areas,” he said. Mr. Kaushal, however, expressed satisfaction over the growth of IoT. During the past one year, the usage had grown by 1,000 times, which was phenomenal by any account, he remarked.
Underlining the multiple applications of IoT, he said, as most people in the rural areas could not buy data, it was mooted that it be given free to enable them to use it in their agricultural operations and other activities.
Public data system on the lines of free Wi-Fi hotspots should be introduced. Without data connection also, people should be allowed to buy small denomination coupons and use broadband facility from places frequented by them.
Mr. Kaushal said TRAI had made several recommendations to the government to increase IoT use by man-to-man and machine-to-machine so as to promote smart city and smart village culture in the length and breadth of the country.
5G in the pipeline
He said the task before TRAI was to increase the speed of broadband for use by machines, and added that increasing the spectrum range was the challenge of the day. Introduction of 5G was also in the pipeline, he said.
On penetration of data usage among people, mainly in the urban areas, he admitted this was mainly due to the offer of free data facility introduced by a telecom operator. “Cheap data is increasing the data use many times over the last one year. Now, we have come to such a pass that drivers are taking us to our destination by using Google map.”
He said they were taking steps for installation of two million devices to increase censors and embedded systems to bring about a sea change in lifestyle and ensure reliable data for effective e-governance, weather forecast, agricultural operations, solid waste management, and keep a tab on street lights, trees, and groundwater table.
