Eight years since Digital India, residents of Kumbalgodu, Nallakhamba, Gollahali, Devagere and Gangasandra are still waiting for optical fiber internet connection.
Kumbalgodu, Nallakhamba, Gollahali, Devagere, Gangasandra and nearby areas in Kengeri hobli are lacking stable optical fiber internet connectivity. Mobile internet connectivity is also very poor and often internet speed is so slow that even WhatsApp doesn’t connect to the server.
WhatsApp usually works even with slow internet speeds but for live interaction it needs a stable internet connection that is possible either through a strong 4G network or optical fiber connection (OFC).
“WhatsApp is very crucial part of our life and it is needed for our work and it keeps us connected to our family and friends,” says Sravan Kumar, resident of Nallakhamba.
A sixth standard student from Nallakhamba says that mobile internet or 4G internet doesn’t give proper speed. Sometimes he has to use YouTube for his study and the video takes a while to buffer during the streaming. Sravan Kumar, the father of the school student said that it would be better if the area had a stable internet connection like Kengeri does.
Another ninth standard student from Kumbalgodu says that he loves to watch World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) but due to poor 4G network and no optical fiber connection, he cannot watch the show on his mobile or computer whereas his friend who lives in Kengeri has an optical fiber connection and he doesn’t face any buffering issues.
YouTube, Netflix, Prime are buffering with no fiber cable internet in Kumbalgodu and beyond.
Till Kengeri, major Internet Service Providers with optical fiber connections (ISPs) like Excitel, BSNL, Jio, Airtel and ACT fiber provide access to the internet.
Nishant from ACT Fiber said that OFC are easy to extend and most of television streams have shifted from Direct to Home (DTH) to over-the-top (OTT). He added that ACT has around 37 percent of the market in Kengeri and its surrounding areas.
Vinod Krishna, Human Resource Department, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) said, “BSNL’s optical fiber internet services are already rolled out but till Kengeri. Beyond Kengeri, the Panchayat has to give the approval to extend the optical fiber cable and to spread the connectivity to the neighboring regions like Kumbalgodu and so forth.”
Mr. Basavaraju, President of Kumbalgodu panchayat said, “Sometimes people may face internet connectivity issues but for better connectivity fiber internet cable is also needed and for that we are planning to give permission to concerned ISPs to provide connections of OFC in Kumbalgodu and its nearby areas.”
Prof. Nagaraju from the Department of Physics, BMS college of engineering says that optical fiber gives the most stable internet connectivity.
He further added, “Copper cables are having a lot of loss of signals but optical fibers have the deliverance rate of cent percent. OFC has the ability of no signal losses as they are made of plastic which insulates from outer disturbances whereas copper cables signals get easily distorted from outer disturbances like electrical wires, rain water and dust.”
Prof. Koppal from RV college of engineering said that optical fiber doesn’t need maintenance compared to copper wire internet cables. Absence of fiber internet in Kumbalgodu onwards regions could be due to lack of permissions from various authorities and not because of the expenses or return of investment (ROI) of the ISPs.
C. Babu, Human Resource Manager, Jio said that ROI is not a major factor for not laying of OFCs, but the nod from the authorities concerned like BBMP or Panchayats is needed.
Similarly, Mr. Himanshu Rajput, Human Resource Department of Airtel OFC internet section also stated that they are willing to offer services to those areas but the red-tape around road-digging for laying down fiber cables can inhibit.
