In an Innovative Move, Three Rajasthan Villages Go Digital via Solar-Powered Telecom Towers

Taking digital connectivity to a whole new level, three villages in Rajasthan’s Alwar district have gone digital using solar-powered telecom towers.

The villages, which have easy access to the Internet now include Karenda, Phalsa and Bahadari. They are located close to the state’s border with Haryana and the project is a part of an initiative started by a private company named VNL Telecom.

Image for representation only. Source: by Yann Forget, via Wikimedia Commons

People residing in these villages, which lack facilities like proper roads, hospitals, post office, and police stations, are using the Internet to pay their bills, download study material or watch videos on YouTube.

Karenda village also has a digital classroom in a government school that received electricity only two months ago.

“I use the Internet to download study material for the exams that I am preparing for. Otherwise, I would have to buy the books which are not easily available near the village and are also not updated as frequently as the study material online,” Krishna Devi, the deputy village head of Karenda, who is preparing for a teacher’s eligibility test (TET), told The Indian Express.

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“The best part is that there is no dependence on the internet and the entire digital education system on conventional electricity. The entire set-up operates on power generated by solar panels installed on the roof of the school while the internet connection has been taken from the telecom tower which too runs on solar energy,” said Rahul Dubey, a technical official of VNL Telecom.

Mohar Singh, who runs an e-services shop near the villages, recently switched from the unreliable and costly internet data packs to the internet service provided by VNL. His shop is where the locals register online to get their Aadhar cards, passports, birth/death certificates, ration cards or other such documents made. Mohar says he had to use the mobile data pack earlier to get work done earlier, and it was a tedious process. But things are much better now.

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