RailTel Corporation has just signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DoT). The two parties have signed the MoU so that they work together in several areas to help expand telecom in the country. Both RailTel and C-DoT will focus on modernising the tech and equipment so that India can progress faster. For the unaware, RailTel works under the Ministry of Railways while the C-DoT is a research centre that operates under the Department of Telecommunications (DoT).
Affordable Broadband Not Far Away in India
One of the biggest challenges that the Indian government and the telecom sector has to address is making the services pocket friendly for the masses. While 4G data is already very affordable in the country, a majority of the population can’t afford to pay for even the entry-level fixed broadband plans. According to a PTI report, Puneet Chawla, CMD of RailTel said that the partnership between the two parties will certainly help with bringing affordable broadband services to the masses in the rural areas. Chawla explained that this will be done by reducing the cost of the equipment for the internet service providers (ISPs). The partnership between RailTel and C-DoT supports the ‘Make in India’ initiative of the government. For the unaware, RailTel, one of the concerned parties in the MoU is known for providing competitive broadband plans to users across the country through its FTTH arm called RailWire. As said above, the partnership will focus on making the technology more modern and also reduce its cost. This will help the ISPs save a lot of money when they invest in infrastructure which in turn will mean affordable services for the end consumer. RailWire broadband plans are available to customers living in multiple regions/telecom circles of the country. The company is slowly expanding to every part of India.
