Techies turn 3 villages of Madhya Pradesh into free Wi-Fi zone

BHOPAL: Inspired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Digital India initiative, four techies from Madhya Pradesh's Rajgarh district have turned three remote villages into first free Wi-Fi hamlets in the country without government funding.

Shakeel Anjum, Tushar Barthare, Bhanu Yadav and Abhishek launched the service at Shivnathpura village on October 4 and later extended the facility to Bawadikheda Jagir, Devria on January 1.

"Though official inauguration was done on January 1, the service began on November 17 as we were testing the services for over a month," said Anjum.

Lal Singh, a school teacher from Shivnathpura, said he brought a computer after his village got the Wi-Fi connectivity.

"I am a government teacher and each student is being mapped as per government instruction. Earlier, to make entries, I had to travel to Khilchipur the nearest town to avail internet service and do GIS mapping," Singh told TOI.

"Now, I have not only done the mapping of my school, but also helped 22 schools of nearby localities do the same from the PC at my home."

Singh said nearly 70 to 80 residents have purchased android phones after the free Wi-Fi service was started.

Another villager, Laxmi Narayan Chouhan, said he had purchased a dongle, but signals were weak. "Now, I have stopped using the dongle…''

The four techies have invested around Rs two lakh for creating the infrastructure for the free service.

The infrastructure includes an 80-foot high tower and 200 ampere inverter to ensure 24x7 connectivity. The four share the recurring expenses of around Rs 7,000 to Rs 8,000 monthly.

"We four are a team and sometimes I pay extra while Abhishek, Bhanu and Shakeel bear the remaining burden," said Barthare.

"We wanted to ensure that this is done at a minimum cost and even in a village like Bawadikheda Jagir where infrastructure is poor," added Anjum.

District collector Tarun Pithode said the local administration is looking into the initiative and working out plans to make the entire district digital.

"We are trying to get funds from elected representatives and they have agreed too," he said. "But making it completely free everywhere is not feasible."

Pithode said they are working on several models and have discussed it with entrepreneurs. "If things go well, we will soon make entire district Wi-Fi free zone."