The day isn't far when you will be able to latch on to a high-speed Wi-Fi network in any part of the country, and connection to a hotspot will be as easy as opening a mobile application on your phone.
The Centre on Wednesday approved a framework for the proliferation of public Wi-Fi networks through PM Wi-Fi Access Network Interface (PM WANI) scheme.
To simplify, it means that the government gave permission to set up lakhs of public Wi-Fi hotspots, and anyone, from an individual in a residential area to a Kirana shop owner to a tea shop vendor, can provide the facility.
Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad told reporters after the cabinet meeting, "The Cabinet has cleared the PM-WANI public WiFi project that will unleash a broadband revolution in India and empower the lives of ordinary Indians, much like the PCO model of past decades that drove mass proliferation of basic telephone services."
For the uninformed, the cabinet approved the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) recommended aggregator-model, tiling the way for new categories of public data offices (PDOs), public data office aggregators (PDOAs), and app providers to deliver public WiFi services.
The Union Minister also said that the proposal will increase the growth of public Wi-Fi networks in the country.
"The move will help unleash a Wi-Fi revolution in the country. For PDOs, there will be no license or fee or registration. This could be a tea shop or kirana shop...PM-WANI is going to be a power transformative digital platform to empower ordinary Indians… it offers a lot of scope for various sectors, particularly education," Ravi Shankar Prasad said while announcing the decision.
According to a report in Deccan Herald, currently, India has around one lakh WiFi hotspots against the target of 5 million by 2020 and 10 million by 2022, set by National Digital Communications Policy, 2018.