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Abash Lal
PGPPM, IIMB
Introduction
Traditionally , the connecting network has been built on top of the Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS) providing end users a 56 kb/s connection using a dial-up modem and up to 8 Mb/s using ADSL/DSL modems The demand for services such as telecenters, video conferencing, video on demand (VOD), and remote storage solutions quickly exhausts the available bandwidth. E-Governance initiative by GoK in launching a pilot project for tele-medicine and tele-education centers in Gubbi Village of dist. Tumkur, Karnataka Improving Last Mile connectivity is essential for sustainability of such telecenters
Analysis
Cost Comparison and Transfer rates Among all three alternatives considered, FTTN is the most expensive initially due to lack of existing infrastructure.
FTTN Cost/km Data transfer rates Years to meet 15+ future demands 6+ Rs. 6750 10 Mb/s, 20 Mb/s,100 Mb/s, 1Gb/sec, unlimited WiMAX Rs. 1667 8 Mb/s
BPL : BPL has a relatively low cost-per-resident, primarily because the infrastructure already exists and the only investment is in the associated equipment needed at the substations and residences. Depending on the manufacturer, cost-per-resident can run around Rs. 12000 Rs 25000.
FTTN
WiMAX There are 176 blocks in Karnataka and assuming two WiMAX BTSs in each block for good
coverage, we need ~350 Base stations. BSNL has planned about 175 base stations. Balance 175 need to be planned for full coverage. As there is a deep mobile penetration, existing GSM towers can be reused Equipment cost for WiMAX of about addl. ~175 sites is of the order of Rs 10 crores. Additional contingency costs of about Rs 5 crores to improve OF backhaul So for entire Karnataka coverage through WiMAX, the total cost come around Rs 15 Crs.
Pilot project
To test the effectiveness, feasibility, econometrics of broadband technology pan-India level, it is important to first study it as pilot project setup at Gubbi Village Consists of setting up of Community Service Centers (CSC) in 15 GPs of one Taluka This project involves all the key stakeholders from government of Karnataka as well as private parties like Wipro, Intel ,Cisco etc. The proposed time period for this project is 6 months. Telemedicine generally needs the upload and download speed of 1 Mbps, though any speed in excess of 600 kbps is also fine. Teleeducation centers needs download speed of 1mbps and the upload speed of 200 kbps.
PERFORMANCE
Inferences contd..
The main reason for unpredictable speed fluctuations Poor quality of copper cable on which the broadband connection is provided Applications like real-time video streaming require higher bandwidth, which means they need higher speed performance and hence higher capacity. As a result, when a user is video streaming, the other users sharing the same bandwidth will obviously experience problems like slow speed, inconsistent connectivity etc. Many people are watching Youtube videos which degrades the speed performance. At present the bandwidth provided to most of the CSCs is only 2Mbps.
Conclusion
Lesser bandwidth available is the cause of speed variations. The maximum bandwidth for each connection is only 2Mbps, which is not sufficient for sustaining consistency in providing quality services. Using WiMAX technology, it is not feasible to cater the bandwidth requirement of highly specialized services like telecenters. The present broadband facilities are not adequate in terms of consistency and speed. Focus should be put on FTTN connectivity considering the advantages discussed, which specifically includes high speed to cater high bandwidth requirements for telecenters.
Recommendations
FTTN surpasses the other in sheer performance, allowing transfer rates up to 100 Mb/s, not only supplying the current demand for bandwidth but also the future demand. To improve the performance of incumbent broadband facility, it is required to monitor Signal to Noise ratio(SNR) and attenuation from the broadband node centre periodically. As laying of fibre involves manual unskilled work there is also scope of integrating this project with NREGA. The capacity(bandwidth) is important but the resultant capacity cannot be indiscriminately increased unless the connectivity between Block and the village level is not improved To implement last mile solution for household needs, WiMAX connectivity will be sufficient. So till exchange level, FTTN connectivity can terminate and beyond exchange to households, WiMAX can take over. FTTN connectivity can go on till GP level and for last mile connectivity, even CAT5 cables which is only Re 1/km, can be used to connect to end user. The Customer Premises equipments(CPE), which will be required in the households, for WiMax or FTTN are currently being imported from China etc, but later on, with economies of scale, such equipments can be indigenously manufactured to reduce fixed cost by 60%.
Recommendations Contd..
To run telehealth and teleeducation even at lower speeds, Skype should be used in comparison with other applications since Skype has the inherent capability to run even at lower speeds of 300 kbps. Other superior compression techniques should also be considered which can use less bandwidth during data transmission. Also, Neurosynaptics ReMeDi (remote medical diagnostics) technology can be used to provide healthcare services which need minimal power and bandwidth. It comprises of a device that runs on two watts of power. This device is integrated with a software that has audiovideo conferencing. This audiovideo conferencing runs at 32 kilobits per second. It can be run over a telephone line, and if its reliable, with the normal modems that we get; and one can have it over any form of connectivity.
References
Gopal Naik. (2011). Designing a sustainable business model for e-governance embedded rural telecentres (EGERT) in India Retrieved from http://ruralkiosk.iimb.ac.in/home/Media/Default/Documents%20for%20Reference/Designing%20a%20sustai nable%20business%20model%20for%20egovernance%20enabled%20telecenters.pdf Heeks, R. (2002). Information systems and developing countries: failure, success and local improvisations. The Information Society, 18, 101-112. Naik, G., Basavaraj, K. P., & Joshi, S. (2010). Making e-governance centers financially sustainable in rural India: a conceptual design for action research. In Chappelet., et al. (Eds.), Electronic government and electronic participation, joint proceedings of the ongoing research and projects of IFIP EGOV and ePart2010 (pp. 218-225). Naik, G., Basavaraj, K. P. (2010). Making Common Service Centers Sustainable in India: A Pilot Initiative Of The Consortium under the leadership of Center for Public Policy, Indian Institute of Management-Bangalore With the Support from e-Governance Department, Government of Karnataka Kim I. Mallalieu and Sean Rocke. (2004). Selecting sustainable ICT solutions for pro-poor intervention. Retrieved from http://web.idrc.ca/en/ev-114403-201-1-DO_TOPIC.html Blake Brannon. (2006). Connecting the Last Mile: A Comparison Among Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH), WiMAX, and Broadband over Power Line (BPL). Retrieved from http://www.blakebrannon.com/resources/documents/ece4000/Report.pdf Fiber to the premises, [Online Document], 2006 Jun 8, [cited 2006 Jun 16], Available HTTP: http://www.answers.com/topic/fiber-to-thepremises Optical fiber, [Online Document], 2006 Jun 13, [cited 2006 Jun 17],Available HTTP: http://www.answers.com/topic/optical-fiber Advancing rural telemedicine: An interview with Sameer Sawarkar [Online Document], 2009 June, Available http://whatmatters.mckinseydigital.com/health_care/advancing-rural-telemedicine-an-interview-withsameer-sawarkar