Govt to raise rural broadband connectivity, says IT Secretary

The project of making India digitalised is one among the top priority projects of the Modi Administration. The electronic components of which almost 85% are being imported, said R S Sharma, Secretary, Ministry of Communications and IT, in the department of Electronics and Information Technology.  Modi Government has set a target record by 2020-2022, to bring down net zero import, he added.  

Bringing up broadband connectivity accessible, with community service centers in the rural areas with nominal charges, Make in India concept is being worked upon.  “With various new services coming up, like integrating the government hospitals, online OPD department providing technical support, the Ministry of Communications and IT has initiated to hospitals like, Ram Manohar Lohia, AIIMS and other state government hospitals.” 

“There are <g data-gr-id="44">number</g> of policies which have been achieved, like, open standards, collaborative development, e-mail policy and others. Digital India which is an initiative of Government of India to integrate the government departments and the people of India hence aims at ensuring the government services are made available to citizens electronically by reducing paperwork,” said R S Sharma, to Millennium Post.  

With every citizen of India who would have an access to the net, with the national optical fibre connectivity. <g data-gr-id="59">Optical</g> fiber can be used as a medium for telecommunication and computer networking because it is flexible and can be bundled as cables. It is especially advantageous for long-distance <g data-gr-id="57">communications,</g> because light propagates through the fiber with little attenuation compared to electrical cables. This allows long distances to be spanned with few repeaters, which can be used in almost two hundred fifty thousand panchayats. 

 “The initiative also includes plan to connect rural areas with high-speed internet networks, where India will ride. Digital India has three core components. The creation of digital infrastructure, delivering services digitally and digital literacy,” Sharma said. The project is slated for completion by 2019. A two-way platform will be created where both the service providers and the consumers stand to benefit. 

The scheme will be monitored and controlled by the Digital India Advisory group which will be chaired by the Ministry of Communications and IT. It will be an inter-ministerial initiative where all ministries and departments shall offer their own services to the public Healthcare, Education, Judicial services etc. The Public-private-partnership model shall be adopted selectively. In addition, there are plans to restructure the National Informatics Centre. The initiative is commendable and deserves <g data-gr-id="49">full</g> support of all stakeholders. 

However, the government is working towards the components including data protection laws, civil 

liberties abuse possibilities, lack of parliamentary oversight for e-surveillance in India, lack of intelligence related reforms in India, insecure Indian cyberspace.  These issues have to be managed first before introducing Digital India initiative in the country. 

With many projects lined up in the near future, like, technology to enhance the governance, domestic manufacturing and capacity building support, Digital India project is worth exploring and implementation despite its shortcomings that can be rectified before its implementation, hence inviting industries from abroad to manufacture in India.