SHILLONG, Nov 16: Despite the formulation of Meghalaya Telecom Infrastructure Policy in 2018, the mobile connectivity in the state including the capital city, Shillong continues to remain poor much to the agony of lakhs of mobile users.
Poor connectivity continues to remain a major problem and the state is yet to get fast and reliable cellular services like other parts of the country.
Apart from messaging and calls, the data services in several parts of the city continues to remain slow even in this era of 4G network where people expect to get fast internet connection on their mobile phones.
Speaking about mobile connectivity, Information Technology and Communications Minister, Hamlet Dohling pointed out that he has received several complaints from people.
“I will convene a meeting of the department to find out the problems and if needed, I will even call the telecommunication companies operating in the state to sort out the problem,” he said.
Dohling said that all the companies must provide good network to the people during this time when almost all the institutions are dependent on internet services for their functioning.
Following the pandemic, life is now more dependent on internet services as most of the meetings are held through video conferencing and it requires fast internet. Students are also making use materials online for their studies.
On the other hand, the telecom companies in Meghalaya blame the lukewarm response from the people in installing mobile towers as one of the major reasons for poor mobile coverage in the state. As per the Meghalaya Telecom Infrastructure Policy, 2018, in Meghalaya, with a population of more than 29.67 lakhs (2011 census), the teledensity is estimated to be less than 70%.
All the 11 District Head Quarters (DHQs) and 39 Block Head Quarters (BHQs) are covered through mobile connectivity.
However, out of 6471 inhabited villages, 2389 (36.92%) does not have mobile connectivity. The Government envisions an accelerated growth in telecom and internet penetration in the state to bridge this gap.
Meghalaya Government in 2018 adopted the Meghalaya Telecom Infrastructure Policy 2018 to facilitate the process of enhancing the installation of telecom infrastructure and their operations in areas under the jurisdiction of the State Government and to facilitate equitable access of quality telecom services to all by way of high-speed access to information and web-based communication.
This policy is a guiding document to streamline the process of application and granting of permission for installation of Mobile Towers, laying of Optical Fiber Cable (OFC) both under-ground and over-ground, In-Building Solutions (IBS) and other telecom infrastructures with time bound provisions.