KOCHI: High-speed Internet for a song! Well,the netizens in the district may well be savouring this privilege in a few months’ time when the BSNL plans in this regard will bear fruit.
According to the BSNL Ernakulam secondary switching area(SSA), which is planning to set up 55 Wi-Fi hotspots at prime city locations, these locations will have a surfing speed of 10 Mbps.
“We hope to commence the service as early as by June since we have already identified the locations. This is the first time the BSNL has come up with such a project without partnering the local bodies or the private firms. It will provide access to high-speed Internet,” said G Muraleedharan, principal general manager, BSNL.
Further, the BSNL plans to provide high-speed Internet at cheap rate. “At present we are providing free Wi-Fi for 30 minutes from the existing 12 Wi-Fi spots. After the first 30 minutes the consumer has to spend `30 for 30 minutes.
But with the new Wi-Fi hotspots turning a reality the amount will come down and the public can enjoy high-speed Internet at cheap rate. We are yet to fix the tariff for the usage and will announce it soon,” said Muraleedharan.
However, the BSNL is yet to reach the break even level from the 12 hotspots already set up here.
“As per the estimate around `2,500 of recharge needs to done from a single hotspot in a month. But this is comparatively low. However, we can soon overcome the crisis with the setting up of the new hotspots,” he said.