Central undertaking to up Uttaranchal connectivity

After Wimax, another converged network comprising voice, data, and video is in the offing in Uttaranchal.

A grant of Rs 40 crore had been given by the department of information and technology, the government of India, to Uttaranchal in this regard, top officials said.

Billed as the "Uttaranchal State Wide Area Network" (UASWAN), it will provide connectivity of 2 mega bytes through lease lines.

For this purpose, the government has roped in the Telecommunications Consultants India Ltd (TCIL), a central government undertaking, to lay the network.

A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed today between TCIL and the Uttaranchal government on enhancing connectivity in the state, considering that the high altitude terrains are the major impediments.

Uttaranchal, consisting of 13 districts, has been grouped into three geographical regions--the high mountain region, the mid-mountain region, and the Terai area. "Our main aim is to connect Dehra Dun with all the 13 district headquarters. Thereafter, we will take the network to the block level," said P Ganesh, director (technical), TCIL, having a turnover of Rs 500 crore.

Prior to Uttaranchal, TCIL was working on similar projects in Gujarat and Jharkhand.

Already, the state government has launched efforts to create an aerial highway called Wimax in Uttaranchal in association with IT giant Intel.

Undertaken by a consortium led by Intel, the new project will provide wireless Internet connectivity up to 128 kbps, even on tough mountainous terrains and far-flung areas in the state.

"Our strategy is to create an aerial highway which defies the mountains and the distances," an official said.

Initially, this project is being undertaken in two districts of Uttaranchal, namely Dehra Dun and Champawat. Later, it will cover the rest of the districts.