[AgowlSown]

I think India would be better off spending the money on improving literacy and alleviating poverty rather than giving out free broadband.

[Hoglaunccoolf]

Probably, but it's neat that they'd do that.

[staisacic]

I'm picturing Ecthy's starving, naan-eating, jewel-playing, street-crapping peasants pulling their wasted, fly-crawling bodies through mountainous dungheaps....searching for food? Clean Water? No! The village internet terminal, the only electrically powered appliance in town, so he can get in 'one more...post...on the MBT thread...'

[Biassasecumma]

make that a few decades

[PIORARMADDERI]

This is not a very good idea. The current government has got it's priorities ass-backwards. There are far more pressing issues that need to be addressed (defence, education, and most importantly, the governmental structure itself). The middle and upper classes can generally take care of themselves if you don't interfere with their lives in a negative manner. There's no need to provide them ridiculous perks like this.

And there is the fact that this will kill private providers.

As an interesting aside, the Maharashtra state government is planning to make Pune the first Indian city to be completely covered by a free-to-use wireless network. The plan is expected to be completed before my four years here get over, so hopefully I'll be able to check it out. But all things considered, I'd prefer it if they fixed the roads and power supply problem instead of spending money on this. That, or let private players free access to the power market.



But I have to admit, even when you consider all the objections against this idea (the one in the OP), this is just plain cool.

[Cnbaapuy]

I just checked up on the Universal Service Obligation Fund (the one being used to fund this) and my objections have diminished considerably, because it was a fund set up precisely for this purpose - so money from other areas is not being diverted here.

Link


1.0 OVERVIEW

1.1 The Universal Service Support Policy came into effect from 1.4.2002. The guidelines for universal service support policy were issued by DoT and were placed on the DoT website www.dot.gov.in on 27th March 2002. Subsequently, the Indian Telegraph (Amendment) Act, 2003 giving statutory status to the Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) was passed by both Houses of Parliament in December 2003. The Fund is to be utilized exclusively for meeting the Universal Service Obligation and the balance to the credit of the Fund will not lapse at the end of the financial year. Credits to the Fund shall be through Parliamentary approvals. The Rules for administration of the Fund known as Indian Telegraph (Amendment) Rules, 2004 were notified on 26.03.2004.
So the development of the monetary and governmental infrastructure to make this possible were built by the BJP.

Truly, Hindu civilisation.



The purposes of the fund:


(i) Stream-I: Provision of Public Telecom and Information Services -

(a) Operation and Maintenance of Village Public Telephone in the revenue villages identified as per Census 1991 and Installation of Village Public Telephone in the additional revenue villages as per Census 2001.

b) Provision of additional rural community phones in areas after achieving the target of one Village Public Telephone in every revenue village.

(c) Replacement of Multi Access Radio Relay Technology Village Public Telephone installed before 1st day of April 2002.

(ii) Stream-II – Provision of household telephones in rural and remote areas as may be determined by the Central Government from time to time

(iii) Stream-III: Creation of infrastructure for provision of Mobile Services in rural and remote areas:

(iv) Stream-IV: Provision of Broadband connectivity to villages in a phased manner

(v) Stream-V : Creation of general infrastructure in rural and remote areas for development of telecommunication facilities

(vi) Stream-VI: Induction of new technological developments in the telecom sector in rural and remote areas



Given that this is what the money was earmarked for anyway, and that funding is subject to Parliamentary approval, the objection of priorities does not stick.

[Arkadiyas]

Originally posted by snoopy369
I think this is a good idea Free 'net access for all is an important element of any society's great leap forward into the information age is this a clever joke or a poor grasp of what indicates being a part of the information age.

[leoto5Fm]

But if this succeeds, the effects of this are going to be mind-bogglingly huge. I've noticed that we Indians have a tendency of sucking all the value we can out of the free flow of information. After all, it was an Indian (Commissioner Pravin Lal) who once famously said:


"Beware he who would deny you access to information, for in his heart, he dreams himself your master."
(I love SMAC )

If this is done concurrently with the other plans to bring all governance information which is supposed to be publicly available online, and to make governmental services reliably available online, then it, combined with the Right to Information Act, has the potential to work the miracle of actually making the government directly accountable to people. The improvement in governance will be dramatic if this happens.

And that will be the beginning of the ascent of India to prosperity.











What most people don't realise is that if it wants, the government of India has the resources and the authority to fix the problems of power, water, roads, and other infrastructure within a span of five years if it wants to. The problem is a lack of political will, and the corruption of the system itself. Even if the government at the centre wants change to happen, the lover levels resist it, due to plain inertia. The only way this resistance can be broken is by putting the neck of everyone who is responsible on the line, by making them directly publicly accountable.

And this can do that.

[CVEGK7mV]

Originally posted by MRT144
mind bogglingly huge as in, half of india still will have huge problems despite everyone having internet? That's precisely my point - that this will act as a huge catalyst in getting those other problems fixed.

[Unjucky]

Originally posted by aneeshm


That's precisely my point - that this will act as a huge catalyst in getting those other problems fixed. cause the internet feeds people and reduces infant mortality and reduces outrage over a kiss.

[Svatudjw]

Originally posted by aneeshm


No. Because it makes the people responsible for infant mortality, and for distribution problems, directly accountable to the people. so people arent accountable to themselves now and the internet will? WTF?

[citalopram]

Originally posted by aneeshm


Until the Right to Information act was passed, government officials were accountable, in theory, but because nobody could ever get any dirt on them, this accountability remained largely theoretical.

A combination of the RTI, the provision of governmental services online, and universal connectivity can work a revolution in the way governance functions, by realising this accountability.

I'm talking about the government and its officials, and the bureaucrats of the Administrative Service, not people at large.

Remember that the government has the resources and the authority to fix almost everything within five years, it just lacks the will. so politicians are killing babies? this is an amazing fact I just now learned on the internet.

[markoiutrfffdsa]

Originally posted by aneeshm


No. But they, along with bureaucrats, are responsible for the conditions which lead to babies dying. you mean they are impregnating indian women at alarming rates?

[Caunnysup]

Free access to internet gives those marginal citizens, those who would like a better job or a better car or whatever, accesss to such where they might not have had it before. It may not immediately do a lot for the poorest of the poor; but if it lifts the lower middle class up a significant notch, that can be nothing but good for the economy as a whole, and eventually for the poorest as well (as there is less need to aid the lower middle class, and more wealth available for the poorest).

That in addition to the other benefits of an information economy, e.g. lower prices due to more informed competition, and higher education rates for all as education becomes easier to come by.

Thus does this slingshot them indeed, through the modern day Oracle (or Cisco, or Microsoft ... whatever... )

[evalayCap]

I think many of you don't understand that less than 1% of Indians own computers and only slightly more than 1% of the population are Internet users. Not suprising in a country where close to half the population is hovering around the poverty line...

http://www.apdip.net/projects/dig-rev/info/in/

[chzvacmyye]

This should help the poor, downtrodden Indian middle class.

[AnetTeilor]

Not quite true. But as Drake said, lack of internet access is more than just the lack of free broadband.

[Jannet.K]

I personally am very disturbed by this news.
Imagine if we get more Indians to post here once they get free broadband

I am afraid that the day that millions of brahmins (sp?) get free broadband will be the death of Apolyton.

[appletango]

That's so sad.