It is imperative that the private sector collaborate with the government agencies to bridge the digital divide

Today, 5.1 billion people, three-quarters of the earth’s population, communicate and connect to the internet using mobile devices, and over half of these connections come from smartphones. While 76 per cent of the people in the developed nations own smartphones, the number stands at a meagre 45 per cent in emerging economies, revealing a striking digital divide.

Although the pandemic has played a pivotal role in making the internet an essential part of our existence, it has witnessed a paradigm shift over the last decade. The Internet of today has far-reaching implications with respect to spreading awareness, seeking out information, and support for education. In many ways, it has transformed the way we live.

Over 700 million people, mostly residing in over 20,000 villages across remote locations, continue to stay unconnected. Lack of access to digital services has been due to the absence of digital infrastructure.

Solution for improving digital access may lie in distributing the cloud from huge data centres (storage) into smaller fragments, placed closer to the users. This edge-cloud ecosystem helps provide best-in-class ‘Quality of Service’ by embedding the nodes deep within the digital network ecosystem. A miniaturised version of the data centre looks like a tiny device that can be installed anywhere (anytime), enabling access to relevant information, for audiences across the economic strata. The analogy is that of understanding how a power bank works.

Last mile digital connectivity will positively impact GDP. A World Bank analysis states that increasing broadband internet penetration can have a significant impact on a country’s GDP. However, in a recent survey, about 60 per cent of India’s rural population is still not actively using digital services.

As we move out of a metro city to travel into remote parts of a particular state, one experiences lack of network connectivity. And even if it’s there, the experience is quite unreliable. In the absolute last mile of the country, probably villages with 2000-5000 people, or even lesser, the availability continues to stay limited or possibly absent. This is where ‘Edge Cloud’ technology can add impactful value.

In a situation like this, where users are located far from the big data centres, which is the case for most tier 4, 5 or rural areas in India, some content can be cached in distributed servers, or ‘Edge Cloud’, and placed closer to the end user, which in this case could be Gram Panchayats, Citizens Service Centres (CSCs), government schools, etc. Therefore, rather than content travelling from a central origin server to fulfill each request, cached content from the ‘Edge Clouds’ travel a short distance to reach the end-user.

Thus, even in an area with unreliable or no data connection, one can access native digital content, as if they were residing in a (digitally) connected area. How is that possible? Firstly, content travels a shorter distance to reach end users, which results in faster transfer of data and no buffering. Secondly, by routing fewer requests to the central cloud, network capacity is increased, thereby eliminating the need to invest in additional network infrastructure, as well as optimizing the existing bandwidth. This makes it economical both for telecom service providers (TSPs) and the end user.

But why is it important to consider economics, not just from the perspective of end users, but also TSPs? Network operators and ISPs have to bear huge infrastructure costs, and their profitability depends on the number of users available in a particular geography, multiplied by the average revenue earned from those users.

In villages or other remote areas, owing to the sparse population and low purchasing power of the users, it doesn’t make economic sense for network operators and ISPs to extend their services. Therefore, the onus of digital connectivity lies largely on the government for villages or remote areas.

Around 20,000 villages in India, predominantly in the north-east, lack reliable internet connections. The Government is undertaking several initiatives such as PM Gati Shakti, Vibrant Village Program and Model Villages under the Border Area Development Programme that will bridge the digital divide to a large extent. In addition, schemes such as BBNL phase 2, PM WANI along with installing VSAT, are initiatives that the government is currently undertaking to ensure that no one is deprived of the access to digital connectivity.

It is imperative that the private sector, aided by new technologies, collaborate with government agencies to assist individuals in gaining access to services as well as education, thereby improving the quality of life and their livelihood opportunities.

(The author is CEO & Co-founder, SugarBox Networks.)