KOZHIKODE: Trikaripur, a nondescript village in Kasargode district is all set to become the first wifi-enabled grama panchayat in the country. On November 10, Minister for Social Justice and Panchayats, M.K.Muneer will declare the status, said village panchayat president, A.G.C.Basheer.
Talking about the unique achievement, Basheer said the idea of going wifi emerged from an experience in Bangalore. “Many people of Trikaripur live in Bangalore in free wifi-enabled areas. Why can’t we have the same here, we thought”, he said. In the first phase, one-and-a-half kilometres will come under wifi coverage and in the second phase, the entire panchayat will be covered. The panchayat has set aside '3 lakh for this.
A wifi-enabled mobile phone or laptop can log on to the website of Trikaripur panchayat and on providing the mobile number of the consumer, he will get an SMS reply with a onetime password. With the password, wifi can be availed of. The service will be for 15 minutes or on the expiry of 100 MB data. Once the connection gets cut, consumers have to wait for 10 minutes and again seek OTP and avail of the service.
Basheer explained that after a successful trial, the panchayat submitted a proposal of providing free wifi service to the District Planning Committee. On October 16, the DPC, ratified the same. The panchayat has now come to an agreement with BSNL for high-speed internet service.
Executive Director of Information Kerala Mission, Dr M.Shamsuddin said the unique achievement of Trikaripur was a feather in the crown of Kasargode, which had became the first district in the country to have all local self government institutions computerized. Among municipalities, Malappuram was the first to achieve wifi status.
