PM WANI Scheme
There are three key vision areas for the Digital India programme:
- electronic connectivity,
- software, on-demand services, and
- citizen empowerment through technology.
- In today’s environment, digital connectivity is a requirement for everything that is digital.
- Fortunately, a number of variables, including the explosion in mobile phone 4G coverage, a major fall in rates, and increased smartphone usage, have changed the connection environment during the previous seven years.
Rapid growth of digital transactions and associated difficulties:
- The rise in digital transactions across domains has also been facilitated by regulations like Nett Neutrality and the nation’s focus on developing Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI), particularly digital ID and UPI.
- However, a sharp increase in data demand has coincided with this expansion.
- India consumes a staggering 19.5 GB of data per person each month, and its mobile networks collectively transfer more data than the mobile networks of the US and China put together.
- Therefore, even a young child today needs five to six terabytes of data to complete online assignments and other educational obligations.
- Therefore, there is still a big gap between supply and demand that is affordable, especially for impoverished people and rural India.
PM-WANI has the potential to revolutionise digital connectivity:
- The Telecom Regulator of India (TRAI) suggested one such solution in 2017: the development of interoperable public wi-fi hotspots.
- In order to put it into action, the Union Cabinet approved PM-WANI Schemes for interoperable public Wi-Fi hotspots in December of 2020.
- The Cabinet’s acceptance had a genuinely revolutionary impact. As no licence or permit was required, businesses may immediately begin their business.
- The work was started by a number of start-ups that had taken part in the initial pilot. Then Covid-19 struck, bringing about a complete stop to work. The PDO Aggregators (PDOAs), the operators, have now started operating again.
PM WANI is set to establish itself as a distinctive digital public infrastructure:
- An open and scalable architecture has been established with the introduction of numerous organisations such as PDO, PDOA, app providers, and a central registry.
- Similar changes are beginning to take place in the area of internet connectivity, much as UPI revolutionised the financial sector in India.
Providing a dependable and affordable option for digital connectivity is PM-WANI:
- Even while big corporations like RailTel and GAIL have already set out infrastructure, it is now underutilised. Additionally, sizable Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are wary of expanding into underserved regions.
- The PM-WANI architecture has a fantastic possibility to succeed in this circumstance.
- For those living in underserved locations, it serves as a ray of hope by providing a reliable and affordable option.
- As a result of turning their end users into retailers, Internet service providers (ISPs) and telecommunications companies (Telcos) wind up selling more bandwidth.
- Additionally, PM-WANI can support the development of regional nanobusiness owners across the entire nation.
- AS, the last-mile providers (PDOs) can be discovered in little shops, neighbourhood businesses, and even homes.
- They create wi-fi hotspots and provide access to the internet to other users, allowing them to increase their monthly income and encourage internet usage through cost-effective sachet plans.
- Aggregators (PDOAs) can profit from the internet distribution space thanks to this framework’s flexibility without having to pay additional licencing fees.
- Their main responsibility is to offer PDOs accounting and authorisation services, delivering a seamless and secure user experience.
Moving forward:
- Because the PM-WANI framework enables internet distribution to be unbundled at the last mile and does not require additional licencing costs, it presents an attractive commercial opportunity for aggregators.
- This idea is particularly intriguing because it offers a solid framework for providing accessible internet to a sizeable percentage of society.
- Home broadband penetration in India is now among the lowest in the world, at around 10%.
- As a result, PM-WANI offers a fantastic chance to increase the uptake of unlimited high-speed internet, eliminating the digital gap, and strengthening communities.
Conclusion:
- All interested parties—governments, civil society, and startups—must support PM-WANI.
- This Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) takes a particularly interoperable, transparent, and scalable approach. Hopefully, it will gain speed similar to UPI or other DPIs.
