BSNL to provide wireless internet in 14 block towns

The state owned telecom major Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has decided to provide wireless broadband connections in at least 14 block headquarter towns in south Orissa's Ganjam and Gajapati districts for establishment of the Biju Seva Kendras (BSKs)-the common services centres (CSC) in these districts. 

While 9,000-odd BSKs will be set up in Orissa in the first phase, 300 such centres will be established in Ganjam and Gajapati districts. 

“The district collectors have provided the lists of the villages and we have decided to provide broadband services in at least 46 places, including wireless broadband services in 14 places,” said BK Nayak, general manager of BSNL’s Berhampur telecom district 

All information including those pertaining to revenue, panchayats and other government related matters can be accessed through BSKs. 

The places selected in the two districts for providing wireless broadband services are R Udayagiri, Adava, Mohana, Garabandh, Kasinagar, Gumma, Nuagada, Rayagada in Gajapati district and Digapahandi, Patrapur, Bargarh, Buguda, Polasara and Jagannath Prasad in Ganjam district. 

“The wireless broadband services will be provided in these places as the usual broadband connection was not possible in these areas. Besides, another 32 places would be connected through the facilities to establish the BSKs in these two districts”, he added.

Nayak was talking to media persons on the occasion of the eight BSNL week, being observed from October 1 to 7. 

In a bid to popularise broadband connections among the people, the public sector telecom service provider has also announced festive offer giving 20 per cent rebate on rent for new broadband customers. The offer is valid from October 1 to 31 and the rent rebate is allowed for six months from the date of connection. 

Apart from this offer, the company has also announced other puja offers for the new landline connections. The new landline connections will be provided without any installation fee, where as Rs 50 will be charged as registration fee. This offer is valid from October 1 to December 29 and is applicable to all the rural and urban customers, Nayak informed. 

To provide improve services to its mobile customers, BSNL would install 52 towers in different places of Ganjam and Gajapati districts. At present, it has 94 towers with 1.20 lakh mobile subscribers and the company has targeted to add another 5,000 customers this year.

Nayak said that the company had launched the prepaid CDMA Wireless in Local Loop (WLL) service from September 1 and there were 6,300 WLL customers in these two districts. The 3G services of BSNL are likely to be started in Orissa from December and we have already conducted a survey in this regard in Berhampur, he added.