Stark digital divide among states: Assocham

Delhi tops tele-density with 238 phone connections for every 100 individuals; Bihar, Assam lag with just 55

Tele-density data points to a stark digital divide among states, with Delhi having the highest score of 238 per cent while Bihar and Assam lagging behind at around 55 per cent, says a report.

Tele-density, the number of telephone connections for every 100 individuals, points to a stark 'digital divide' with large population in Bihar, Assam, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh still being deprived to communicate with the rest of the country, industry body Assocham said in a paper.

Deeper tele-density and a quality service is critical to the government's Digital India programme, which has been launched to reach government services to the citizens through e-governance, it said.

"The digital divide is clearly visible between different states with some of the eastern states not finding favour with the telecom service providers. The reasons may vary between the lack of infrastructure like power availability to even indifference in terms of business opportunities," it added.

Against the national tele-density of 81.82 per cent, the figure for Bihar is dismal 54.25 per cent, Assam 55.76 per cent, Madhya Pradesh 62.33 per cent and Uttar Pradesh 62.74 per cent.

On the other hand, the tele-density in Delhi is over 238 per cent, whereas that of Himachal Pradesh is 123.19 per cent.

The paper said the Himalayan state with difficult terrain is only next to Delhi in terms of tele-density. Other states mapping rather well on the telecom prosperity are Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Karnataka and Kerala.

Assocham said the Centre with the help from the state governments should double the efforts to ensure that both the government-owned BSNL and the private telecom service providers should reach the states with low tele-density, or else the digital divide can get deeper.

"The government's own programme of laying the broadband services would play a critical role," it added.