The Hindu : Bridging the digital divide

The Hindu : Bridging the digital divide

PCO kiosk — Chiraag is equipped with a PC, multimedia, web camera, printer, corDECT wall set, speaker microphone and power backup connecting rural areas.
NOT LONG ago the possibility of networking rural areas with a telephone connection remained a pipedream. But if you still hold on to this notion you are not in sync with the latest developments. As of today nearly 300 villages have been networked. And remember, this networking is not restricted to just providing a telephone connection but has gone one step further. Simultaneous telephone and Internet access has been achieved using indigenously developed (wireless) corDECT technology.

If that is not making you sit up and take notice then taste this. Internet connectivity is not restricted to what you and I perceive in the traditional way. Video conferencing, telemedicine, e-agriculture, e-Dr. Veterinary, are just some of the customised services provided. More advanced services are getting their finishing touches and would soon be launched. The brain behind this, Ashok Jhunjhunwala, Professor of the Electrical Engineering Department, IIT, Madras is happy but not satisfied.

He hopes to bring nearly 20,000 villages connected in a year's time. A tall order indeed. But for a man whose middle name is perseverance, the task does not seem intimidating. "It is a tough task but we will be able to do it," he said. He dreams big and wants to network the entire 6.4 million villages in the country. "But it's a long way to go before we do that," he said humbly.

Making him realise his dream is the Chennai based n-Logue Communications Pvt Ltd that has its task cut out to network the rural areas. The networking is happening in several states. Maharashtra is one of the states that is leveraging the technology. Already several connections are in place and the Maharashtra government wants another hundred more to serve as dedicated agricultural access points.

But a shot in the arm for n-Logue is the mandate from the Tamilnadu government to network and put in place the infrastructure required in ten districts. TN's Rural Access to Services through Internet (RASI) project has already got 70 villages in each of the two districts — Madurai and Cuddalore — networked and running. And nearly 5-10 villages are getting networked every month in these two districts. Three more districts would get connected in a couple of month's time.

"We like to have 30 projects in TN running by March 2004 with each project connecting 250-300 villages. It is expected to serve nearly two crore people," said P.G. Ponnapa, Chief Executive Officer, n-Logue. The government has taken on itself to provide the content. For a welcome change RASI project seems to be different from other government projects that start with a bang and die even before inaugurations comes to an end. And the reason — it has attracted attention from corporates, educational institutions, hospitals and private telecom companies.

Akin to a PCO booth, the telephone cum Internet access point for a villager will be housed in a kiosk named `Chiraag'. It uses Prof. Jhunjhunwala's corDECT technology to provide the last mile wireless connection. The kiosk is equipped with a PC with CD ROM and multimedia, web camera, printer, corDECT wall set, speaker microphone and power backup for four hours. The language barrier has been taken care by providing local language software.

The kiosk is connected to a Local Service Provider (LSP) where a (DIU) switch is located. LSP in turn is connected to the basic service operator (BSO) be it BSNL or private operators like Tatas or Reliance using copper or fibre optics. The copper carries the voice while a leased line from a LSP to a nearest Internet gateway carries data. A LSP can serve kiosks within a radius of 25 km (2000 sq km) and cater to needs of nearly 300 villages. LSP and Chiraag kiosks work in a typical hub and spoke type pattern with the LSP forming the hub and the kiosk operators forming the spoke. This arrangement provides dedicated bandwidth for all hub and spoke connection. The advantage is fully realised when video conferencing is being done and particularly when multiparty video conferencing is done. Video conferencing is already in vogue between villagers and agricultural institutions and hospitals. Of course it is possible to videoconference between two kiosks.

Videoconferencing between the district collector and villagers is expected to be launched in Nellikuppam (Cuddalore district) early this year. The multiparty videoconferencing technology where more kiosks are in the loop with a hub is undergoing beta testing. Other applications like connecting primary health centres to tertiary hospitals are on the card.

corDECT provides 35 kbps and 70 kbps connectivity speed. The 35 kbps is generally offered to kiosks with the 70 kbps reserved for premium customers. Typically videoconferencing requires 128 kbps connectivity but n-Logue has been able to pull it off with just 35 kbps connectivity. "We are able to do it at 35 kbps by compressing the audio and video apart from shrinking the size of the video," Mr. Ponnapa explained.

Audio is compressed to 8-9 kbps and video to 20 kbps. But the trade off does not end with image shrinking - the voice and image do not stream seamlessly. But for the rural areas time lag and lack of seamless stream is a non-issue and has not dampened the villagers' eagerness or of others involved in the project. "It's the best thing to happen and has tremendous potential to change the face of the country," Prof. Jhunjhunwala commented.

How corporates gained

THE STORY of EID Parry Ltd as the LSP at Nellikuppam to enable sugarcane farmers to do business online is now a well-known instance of empowering the farmer. The Chennai based Tractors and Farm Equipments Ltd (TAFE) took a leaf out of this Parry experiment to reach people in remote areas. And success came more quickly than they expected. It sold a tractor to a Melur (in Madurai district) villager in a month's time of uploading the order form and has received five more enquiries. "A dealer sitting in Madurai would find it difficult to reach these remote places. RASI has made it happen," said Vijay Bhat, Deputy Manager (Dealer Development), TAFE.

Hindustan Lever Ltd is in discussion with n-Logue to explore if Chiraag could be used by its Self Help Groups for accessing information on agriculture, weather, fertilizers/seeds, education, jobs, government schemes and health. This is just the tip of the iceberg and there is plenty to be tapped by the government and corporates alike.

Private telecom operators who are required to provide rural connections would stand to gain from Chiraag. As a matter of fact it would be a win-win situation for n-Logue and private operators.

If the last mile connection is taken care by n-Logue, the operators provide the backbone required for Chiraag.

Closing the loop is the involvement of ICICI Bank in the RASI project for issuing credit cards to kiosk operators. Three kiosk operators in Nellikuppam and seven in Melur would be provided with the plastic. Payment (in cash) of LIC, telephone bill to name a few by villagers will now be a short walk to the kiosk.

The operator in turn would transfer this amount to the bank using credit card issued to him. "Compare this with the present scenario where the villager has to travel all the way to a nearby town to make his payment," Mr. Ponnapa noted. "That is the power that Chiraag wields and various applications and benefits that can be reaped are limited only by one's imagination."

R. Prasad


in Chennai