It was a windy forenoon and I decided to drive upto Dachigam, the more I visit that place the more it mesmerizes me. As usual I took some pictures and wanted to upload them on Internet but the slow connection somehow didn’t allow me to do so. At that moment an Idea of turning Srinagar City into a Wifi- Zone just struck me. In the modern world people eat, drink and sleep internet, this could turn out to be a wonderful facility not only for the locals but also for the tourists. Public Wi-Fi hotspots are nothing new; of course they have been at the Airports, coffee houses, and tourist destination for several years. The concept of free wi-fi is growing faster than ever in this contemporary world and news of new cities planning such a facility pour in every day. In perhaps the most trouble torn state in the world, where tourism has shown a very positive sign its significance is hard to miss.
It was wonderful to know that Gulmarg has been turned into such a zone and if I am not incorrect its free as well. If such a facility is provided to the Srinagar City it will mean that the City people will be able to connect to the Web anywhere and at any time. They will be able to send an e-mail while traveling in a bus, chat while taking a Shikara Ride or conduct a free internet-based Skype phone call to anyone in the world. I know it’s difficult but not impossible, there will be security issues, cyber crime issues and a whole lot of fingers pointing towards such a proposal including the opposition from the very influential lobby of 3G providers but as they say what should be done must be done. Everyone in order to avail this facility would have to register either individually or in a group. Say a Shikara Wala, a House Boat owner or a Hotelier will be authorized and on their unique code provided by the service provider the tourists will be able to enjoy the web access on nominal rates, Similarly, the general public will have to show some kind of identity to register individually. The rates could be a matter of debate and it could be seen how far the government goes to subsidize the web access. Should users be charged according to connection speed or according to usage? These are some of the questions that could be decided later .We could certainly learn a lesson or two from scores of cities that are now offering – or planning to offer - citywide wireless access to the web.
These networks will not come cheap. Apart from technological failures the cost could be high but eventually it could turn out to be a high revenue generating proposition. I understand it would not be a cake walk for our IT department but it wouldn’t be a complex issue either. They will have to join a network of hundreds of wifi Hot Spots which could be scattered across the city and hard wired into a digital network. The city’s major attraction could be taken up in a phased manner, say Mughal Gardens, the whole of DAL lake , Hazratbal Mosque, the Boulevard Road and off course the Lal Chowk area could be taken up first. My own experience has been very successful, I have installed a WI-FI system at my home and believe me it’s such a relief, I could take my Ipad anywhere in the house or the garden and very leisurely enjoy surfing the net. On a lighter note whenever my Brother Tabir calls me on Skype from America I even show him the road outside my house. I can’t complain because honestly since the day I have installed the Wi-fi system it has really been helpful.
A techie friend of mine who lives in US had told me once about this and I laughed at him saying why the city municipality would provide such a service, But in San Fransico they did it and now almost half of European cities have followed later. If I had my way I would suggest our IT department or the government to follow the San Francisco pattern, with their proposal the city not only owns all the equipment, network but also controls the same. There may be issues of Cyber Criminals who could carry out an attack but since it’s based on radio signals they can be easily detected and shown when an unauthorised user tunes into the same frequency , Even in India the Cyber city of Pune I am told is a free Wifi Zone . We could always solicit ideas from all the people, organisation, corporate houses, people related with tourism and take their valuable suggestion about how the networks would be built, who could use them and who would pay for them.
And finally, It’s a very win win combination when we have a young IT Minister and a Chief Minister who wants to turn this state into an IT hub. Such an Idea will not only boost the tourism Industry but also give a helping hand to our police department by way of remote surveillance. Haven’t we heard on the Idiot Box, that an Idea can change our lives? Here, I hope it changes for the betterment of our beloved city. The Srinagar City.
It was wonderful to know that Gulmarg has been turned into such a zone and if I am not incorrect its free as well. If such a facility is provided to the Srinagar City it will mean that the City people will be able to connect to the Web anywhere and at any time. They will be able to send an e-mail while traveling in a bus, chat while taking a Shikara Ride or conduct a free internet-based Skype phone call to anyone in the world. I know it’s difficult but not impossible, there will be security issues, cyber crime issues and a whole lot of fingers pointing towards such a proposal including the opposition from the very influential lobby of 3G providers but as they say what should be done must be done. Everyone in order to avail this facility would have to register either individually or in a group. Say a Shikara Wala, a House Boat owner or a Hotelier will be authorized and on their unique code provided by the service provider the tourists will be able to enjoy the web access on nominal rates, Similarly, the general public will have to show some kind of identity to register individually. The rates could be a matter of debate and it could be seen how far the government goes to subsidize the web access. Should users be charged according to connection speed or according to usage? These are some of the questions that could be decided later .We could certainly learn a lesson or two from scores of cities that are now offering – or planning to offer - citywide wireless access to the web.
These networks will not come cheap. Apart from technological failures the cost could be high but eventually it could turn out to be a high revenue generating proposition. I understand it would not be a cake walk for our IT department but it wouldn’t be a complex issue either. They will have to join a network of hundreds of wifi Hot Spots which could be scattered across the city and hard wired into a digital network. The city’s major attraction could be taken up in a phased manner, say Mughal Gardens, the whole of DAL lake , Hazratbal Mosque, the Boulevard Road and off course the Lal Chowk area could be taken up first. My own experience has been very successful, I have installed a WI-FI system at my home and believe me it’s such a relief, I could take my Ipad anywhere in the house or the garden and very leisurely enjoy surfing the net. On a lighter note whenever my Brother Tabir calls me on Skype from America I even show him the road outside my house. I can’t complain because honestly since the day I have installed the Wi-fi system it has really been helpful.
A techie friend of mine who lives in US had told me once about this and I laughed at him saying why the city municipality would provide such a service, But in San Fransico they did it and now almost half of European cities have followed later. If I had my way I would suggest our IT department or the government to follow the San Francisco pattern, with their proposal the city not only owns all the equipment, network but also controls the same. There may be issues of Cyber Criminals who could carry out an attack but since it’s based on radio signals they can be easily detected and shown when an unauthorised user tunes into the same frequency , Even in India the Cyber city of Pune I am told is a free Wifi Zone . We could always solicit ideas from all the people, organisation, corporate houses, people related with tourism and take their valuable suggestion about how the networks would be built, who could use them and who would pay for them.
And finally, It’s a very win win combination when we have a young IT Minister and a Chief Minister who wants to turn this state into an IT hub. Such an Idea will not only boost the tourism Industry but also give a helping hand to our police department by way of remote surveillance. Haven’t we heard on the Idiot Box, that an Idea can change our lives? Here, I hope it changes for the betterment of our beloved city. The Srinagar City.
2 comments:
Nice article. I'd read it before whn it was first published, bt liked reading it again. For a city which can be one of the biggest tourist hotspots in the world, this is very relevant. And the write-up is not unidimensional; it looks at various aspects of the issue.
and you thought it is possible :)
Post a Comment