BHUBANESWAR: Poor connectivity and network problems have emerged as a serious problem for Odisha as online activities have increased during the Covid-19 pandemic.Minister of State for Information Technology Tushar Kanti Behera said that education sector has been mostly affected because of emphasis on online classes due to the pandemic. He said that online classes have affected students of rural areas as all villages do not have 4G network.
The Minister said that meetings of guardians of the students in schools are being called to discuss the situation emerging from the pandemic. Besides, the State government has also discussed the issue with telecom operators BSNL, Airtel, Idea and Jio. He said that because of the intervention of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, Airtel has given connectivity in some areas of Malkangiri.
The Minister admitted that there is network and connectivity problem in Kandhamal, Malkangiri, Rayagada, Sundargarh and Koraput districts. He said that the Chief Minister and the government have written several letters in this regard as it is a Central subject. Though Centre has assured that tele-density in Odisha will be increased, nothing has been done in this regard so far.
Minister of State for School and Mass Education Sameer Dash also said that the Chief Minister has taken up the issue with the Centre several times. Increase in tele-density is required in tribal dominated areas of the State, he said and added that the situation is expected to improve soon.
According to the State’s Economic Survey for 2018-19, Odisha has a tele-density of 79.58 per cent compared to the national average of 91.09 per cent. The State also has fewer internet subscriptions when compared with the national average. Odisha has only 28.22 internet subscribers for a population of 100, compared to the national average of 38.02. Over 60 lakh students study in government schools in Odisha.