The state government has proposed the installation of 200 mobile towers across the state in two phases to improve internet connectivity and mobile network.
The move comes even as TOI has continuously highlighted Goa’s bad connectivity, especially in the context of remote learning and work-from-home setups.
Chief minister Pramod Sawant said that in the first phase, mobile towers will be erected at 62 locations, and in the second, 138 more will come up. “This will greatly improve connectivity and benefit all sections of the society, including students, IT professionals, tech startups, etc.”
India’s telecom sector, in the efforts of enabling policies including more quantum of the spectrum, is set to establish new benchmarks in the next-generation network deployments and service delivery.
The state government has received more than 250 applications to install mobile towers. In some places, the public has opposed and stopped these units, fearing that the radiation could cause serious health issues.
TOI, in a series of reports, reported how students have to walk kilometres in search of connectivity for online classes.
In August, the state cabinet approved the Goa Telecom Infrastructure Policy 2020, which provides for a singlewindow clearance by PWD to install towers in government and private properties.
Local bodies to get ?50k one-time grant
Sawant had said that mobile towers will be set up in government-owned land on priority.
Only an NOC from the property owner will be needed to permit mobile tower installation in private property.
The salient feature is that areas have been divided into urban, semi-urban and rural and no permission from local bodies will be required to install mobile towers. The scheme will be under the IT department, but the PWD will be the implementing agency. A one-time grant of Rs 50,000(US$685.03) will be given to local bodies. For urban areas, Rs 50,000 will be the monthly rent for operators of mobile service. In rural areas, Rs 25,000 will be the rent.
The PWD and other departments will issue the permissions to set up towers and cables without any delay. The policy is to streamline the process to grant permissions to set up the towers.
The think tank said producers of CEO products in India took a “massive hit” as the share of domestic value-added products in the total demand plunged from 70 per cent in 1995 to around 45 per cent in 2011.
“PC market growth will come down next year. When we look at Lenovo, the market has always been flat, but we have achieved double-digit growth. Our goal is to grow by double digits every year,” Agarwal said.https://telecom.economictimes.indiatimes.com
