THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Kerala lags behind many other states and Union territories in household internet connectivity and people’s information and communication technology (ICT) skills, according to the ‘Comprehensive Modular Survey: Telecom 2025’ released by the National Statistics Office (NSO) recently.
As per the report, 91.7% of households in Kerala have an internet facility within their premises. This includes ‘fixed/WiFi network’, ‘mobile network’ or all of those. Chandigarh, Ladakh and Lakshadweep reported cent per cent connectivity while the national average stood at 86.3%. Kerala was positioned 12th among 37 states/UTs. Rural and urban areas in the state recorded 89.6% and 93.6% connectivity, respectively.
The survey collected information on the ICT abilities of individuals in seven categories. Kerala fared better than the national average in all categories, except one. But the state did not find a place among the top ten states/UTs in six categories.
Keralites ranked 12th in the ability to perform online banking transactions, with 60% of respondents aged 15 years and above saying they were able to carry out transactions via computer or mobile. The national average came in at 48.9%. Chandigarh (80.1%) stood first in this category, followed by Mizoram (69.9%). Urban areas in Kerala reported a higher percentage, 63.1%, than rural areas, 56.8%.
According to the survey, 70.85% of respondents in Kerala had the skill to send a message with an attached file through email, messaging service or SMS. Kerala ranked 14 in this category, while the national average stood at 63.6%. All-India, 24.2% of respondents said they have created an electronic presentation using presentation software on mobile phones or computer-like devices. Kerala which reported a lower percentage, 22.9%, was in 21st position. However, the state ranked third in the category of “creating documents with word processing software,” with 26.4% of respondents having this ability, against the national average of 13.1%.
Furthermore, 49.4% of respondents from Kerala reported the ability to ‘send or receive email’, against the national average of 43.5%. At 19th, the state recorded its second-lowest rank in this category.