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Bringing the Net Effect to 700 million Rural Indians. Driving the Digital Revolution towards rural prosperity. Prof. Ashok Jhunjhunwala, IITM, Chennai ashok@tenet.res.in. Rural Magic !!.
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Bringing the Net Effectto 700 million Rural Indians Driving the Digital Revolutiontowards rural prosperity Prof. Ashok Jhunjhunwala, IITM, Chennai ashok@tenet.res.in
Rural Magic !! The next few slides have truly “magically” effected the lives of people in villages . All these are true stories
Photographs by an ordinary web camera:Remote feedback given by Aravind Eye hospital Palaniammal’s eyes… • A 60 year old from a village near Melur
Agricultural Consultancy • An Okra crop saved • Top: Diseased with yellow mosaic • Below : Post treatment • Saving of Rs 140,000 ($2800) for the farmers • Cost of information Rs 20 ($0.40) • Built huge trust in the system Wireless India, Oct03 4
The Vet is on the Net ... • This goat had a wound near its mouth and could not eat for a week • The advice from the doctor cured its problem in 2 days
Remote Cardiac care Wireless India, Oct03 6
The Power of Visual Communication Net Meeting : The Power of Visual Communication A Doctor in Madurai talking to patients inUlaganathapuram Wireless India, Oct03 7
Veeramani, a man with disabilities, used to operate the pump for the Village Overhead Tank • The Village Head removed from his job and gave the post to one of his relatives • Through the kiosk, he sent an email petition to the Chief Minister’s Cell, attaching a photograph of himself • He got his job back ! Empowerment of People- Attapatti Wireless India, Oct03 8
In essence • Information and access to information leads to a significant increase in the quality of life • People pay for improvements in quality of life • This makes it a sustainable option Wireless India, Oct03 9
How does one connect Rural India? • India has 600,000+ villages • 700 million people (under 1000 people per village) • Can Rural India afford Connections? • Needs • Technology • Sustainable Business Model • Organisation which thinks and acts Rural Wireless India, Oct03 10
To PSTN • 35/70 kbps Always-on Internet plus simultaneous telephone • $ 150 - 200 per line price • 1 million lines being deployed To Internet Innovative Technology to connect Rural India • BSNL has fibre connectivity to most Talukas (county hq) • CorDECT WLL developed at IITM • provides a telephone line and Internet connection in a 30 Km radius • can connect 85% of Indian villages • start-up costs very low Wireless India, Oct03 11
135 million rural households Use Local Entrepreneurs to drive ICT • Entrepreneur-driven operator assisted telephone booths (STD PCOs) introduced in 1987 • Today in urban areas: • 950,000 such PCOs covering every street of smallest town • generate 25 % of total telecom income • 300 million people use these PCOs • Lesson for Rural: • To serve Rural people with incomes less than $ 1/day, aggregate demand and let Entrepreneurs drive it • Aid/ Grant does not scale • Successful Enterprises can scale to all villages Wireless India, Oct03 12
Innovative Business Models • n-Logue :A Rural Service Provider • aggregate demand into a kiosk • $1000 (including taxes) per Kioskproviding telephone, Internet, multimedia PC with web-camera, printer and power back-up for PC • plus Indian language software, video conferencing software, training and maintenance • set up by a village entrepreneur on the lines of urban PCOs • provides telephone, stand-alone Computer and Internet services • needs $70 per month to break even (7cents per person per month) Wireless India, Oct03 13
n-Logue Services Revenues LSP-1 LSP-2 LSP-3 Kiosk Kiosk Kiosk Kiosk Kiosk Villagers The Business Model
Application & Solution Providers • Provides Training and Technical Support • Handles Licensing and Policy issues • Provides Internet Backbone Connectivity • Enables Kiosk Services through Alliance Partners • Creates Awareness Internet Backbone • Markets Connections • Provides Onsite Support and Training • Manages Local Web & Email Services • Manages Local Content Pages • School/PHC • Private Business • Government Office • Rural NGO ACCESS CENTRE Local Service Partner Scope: 3000 sq km 400-600 connections (1 in each village) • Provides Internet Access to Local Community • Provides Awareness and Training • Channels Information needs of Community through LSP to Application & Content Providers Internet Kiosk Operator Financing
A Suitably Positioned Kiosk Like this … Tamil Nadu Wireless India, Oct03 16
Or these… Maharashtra Rajasthan Wireless India, Oct03 17
A Kiosk Owner/Operator Wireless India, Oct03 18
The Kiosk Owner • Should have studied up to Class 12 • Need have no prior computer Training • Should be able to communicate to the people in the village Wireless India, Oct03 19
Kiosk: Bouquet of Services (beside telephony) • A variety of Services and Applications, relevant to Rural people, need to be enabled • No single service can stand on its own • Education • Livelihood • Health • Entertainment • Communication • E-Governance • PC based services • Computer education • CD movies • DTP work • Photography • Internet based services • E-Governance • Telemedicine • E-learning • E-AgricultureusingVideo conferencing Wireless India, Oct03 20
Payment of • Municipal taxes • Electricity Bills • Bus Tickets • Purchase of Seeds / Fertilisers • Entrance and Exam Fees Net Banking • Distribution of Application Forms • Information from Online Databases like • BPL lists • Electoral Lists, etc From Central Website Physical Dispersal • Dispersal of • PDS coupons • Application forms for exams, etc Information Dissemination • Text, Audio, Video formats of various Government / Public service Announcements • Video-conferencing between Collector and villagers • Physical Notice Board outside Kiosk on which Govt. Notices can be pasted VILLAGE KIOSK At the Village Wireless India, Oct03 21
The Dream Current Rural GDP in India = $ 140 billion For a Population = 700 million people GDP / Person = $ 200 per year Rural Prosperity DOUBLING per-capita Rural GDP $400 per person per year Wireless India, Oct03 22
Agriculture Trade & Commerce Animal Husbandry IT-Based Services Agricultural Processing Industry Rural Micro-Enterprises are the Wealth Creators • Micro-enterprises need • Finance • Knowledge and Training • Buying & Selling • Insurance • Can Communications Enable these ? Wireless India, Oct03 23
Technologies in Use • corDECT WiLL Midas • will enable 100/200 dedicated and2 Mbps shared connection next year • RAS & Router Banyan • Minnow ISP in a box Nilgiri • Billing System Nilgiri • Network Management NMSWorks • Chirag voice/video mail TeNeT • Power back-up Alacrity • Indian Language Office package CK Wireless India, Oct03 25
To PSTN To Internet corDECT Wireless in Local Loop IITM - Midas • 35/70 kbps dedicated Always-on Internet plus simultaneous telephone • 100/200 kbps dedicated & 2Mbps shared connection in near future • Price target: $ 100 to $ 150 per line Wireless India, Oct03 26
Network Management System A must with distributed deployment of Intelligent nodes Convergence of Telecom and Internet management Manage traffic, subscribers, subscriber equipment and network health from management centers IITM-NMSWorks IITM - OOPS Video Conferencing on Internet • Low bit-rate multi-party Video Conferencing (audio + video + chat at 20 kbps onwards) • On-line lecturing at low bit-rates • Video Mail
Office package in Indian Languages IITM - Chennai Kavigal
Major New Initiatives • Multi-party multi-rate video conferencing OOPS • Live Lecture OOPS • Rural ATM Machine Vortex • Finger print detection HP-IITM • Medical Diagnostic kit NeuroSynaptic • LCD projection system TeNeT • Web Terminal MeTeL Midas • Entertainment Terminal TeNeT • Rural Banking SW TeNeT • On-line eye-testing HP-IITM • Sparse Area Comm System TeNeT TeNeT faculty and 10 companies incubated by it (1000 engineers) working to make the dream true Wireless India, Oct03 29
VITAL centres : Next 3 months IITM - NeuroSynaptic • Village Internet Test and Analysis laboratory • Upgrade the internet kiosk for basic “non invasive” medical tests • ECG (Sensors connected to the monitor) • Stethoscope (plugged into the sound card) • Pressure ( Digital BP meters ) • Temperature • Eyes ( Charts and Color blindness) • Weight ( Regular weighing scale) • Upgrade PHC with Internet connectivity • For Blood testing (over and above VITAL equipment) • Sugar and AIDS Most of this equipment would be sourced at under $200 Wireless India, Oct03 30
Financial Services with ICICI Bank IITM-Vortex • Kiosk operators to have Credit cards • Collect cash from villager and pay online • Govt. payments, Telephone bills • Kiosk operator to be an agent for • agri-crop loans • Rural Insurance, Health and Crop • Rural low cost ATMs at kiosks • Works along with the PC already existing • Breakthrough pricing envisaged of $600 Wireless India, Oct03 31
<-- 256 Kbps 2 Mbps --> 128 Kbps --> 3.8 m antenna 2.4 m antenna 15 -25 Kms with 50 connections PSTN Internet IITM - ISRO Sparse Area Communications where there is no fibre backbone • 8-10 voice channels + 64/128 kbps Internet satellite backhaul • Each hub supports 16 to 20 remote sites with 2 Mbps download • $150 corDECT + $200 backhaul cost per connection Wireless India, Oct03 32
Summary • Internet is Power • every village need to be connected at the earliest • IIT Madras and n-Logue have a workable business model to revolutionize rural India • Excellent goodwill • Strong support from State and Central Governments • But the challenge is to make this happen in scale • To expand the footprint from 1 million to 10 million people • from 1000 connections in 20 district to 10000 connections in 75 district in next 9 months • and then to 700 million • and simultaneously drive the rural economy to double per capita rural GDP Wireless India, Oct03 33
To Sum Up • ICT can reach everyone provided there is a big enough Vision behind it • Dream of Doubling per capita Rural GDP • Finance, Commerce, Training & Information are key • Driving Education, Health and Entrepreneurship is the means • Wireless Internet with fibre backhaul can enable these • Sparse Areas will require special technologies & efforts • Large number of innovative technologies and applications need to be developed catering specifically to Rural areas Wireless India, Oct03 34