Significance of Kerala’s K-fon project

Significance of Kerala’s K-fon project

Kerala-Fibre Optic Network (K-Fon) has been introduced to provide a platform for the social development of the State in terms of education, health, agriculture, governance, women welfare, culture, entrepreneurship and employment. The Kerala’s Fibergrid project aims to provide free high speed internet connection to over 20 Lakh Below Poverty Line (BPL) families of the state.

What are the Significance of Kerala-Fibre Optic Network project

Digitization: The Kerala-Fibre Optic Network (K-Fon) project will push entire Kerala to the digitization of government services like the e-health programs, IT parks, airports, and seaports.

Digital Divide: Through K-Fon Scheme, the Government aim to connect lakhs of households which do not have access to a Broadband connection. This project will provide low cost internet connections to households which are below poverty line which will break the digital divides between people.

Good Governance: Kerala will be the first state in the country to have a complete fibre-optic network that would link over 30000 Government offices and educational institutions and mobile towers to provide fast internet. The network will give the state a big boost in the availability of internet-based services such as telemedicine, global consultation which would lead to good governance.

Socio-cultural: The project is aimed at boosting the socio-economic growth of Kerala by developing the communication and digital literacy skills of the populace. The K-Fon project has far-reaching benefits for the state as it will not only provide better connectivity, accessibility to e-services, and information security, but also foster socio-cultural integration and self-empowerment.

Quality of Internet: The significance of the K-Fon project is that it is the first step towards establishing a standard and quality of Internet as well as capacity-building measures which would allow all citizens to be digitally literate.

Efficient Governance: With a fiber-optic backbone, K-Fon will allow for an unprecedented demand on the legislature and the executive to be held accountable for their actions on matters that fall within the ambit of the right to information. Through internet access and digital literacy, it will also make it easier to demand accountability from the state, as well as encourage the legislature and the executive to take a more proactive role in furthering this right.

Need of K-Fon project at national level

Social Justice: K-Fon project would be a great initiative in this direction. It is a national mission to bring every Indian citizen online, K-Fon technology would allow them to use the internet and thus empowering them with various rights and services.

Access to services: There is a need for universal access to telecommunication services. The digital divide is the disparity in the level of access to information technology. The divide cuts through social, economic, and ethnic boundaries. This leads to a new kind of inequality, digital inequality, where social and economic backwardness is exacerbated due to information poverty, lack of infrastructure, and lack of digital literacy.

Digital economy: The government is encouraging the use of digital services and for a knowledge economy. The K-Fon aims at providing access to the internet for all, based on the government FTTH network. It is a technology that will bring a revolutionary change in the quality of life for people in villages.

Preventing exclusion: In the absence of Internet access and digital literacy enabling that access, there will be further exclusion of large parts of the population, exacerbating the already existing digital divide. The K-Fon project was born out of the need for better online services and greater inclusion of all citizens, especially weaker ones.

Good governance: Good Governance is about effective and efficient delivery of public services to the citizen sidelining red tape. The lack of electronic services lowers transactional transparency, makes service delivery less inclusive, and hinders the monitoring of public resources. Online services also help track the usage of public funds, citizen entitlements, and government initiatives.

Employment opportunities: Poverty has been termed as one of the biggest threats to human beings worldwide. There are still many people living in rural areas of both hemispheres, who are facing great difficulties in accessing the internet due to various reasons including their remote locations and unaffordability. In addition to this, they may lack digital skills or even if they have some knowledge about it, they don't have access to adequate resources and opportunities. K-Fon expected to break this difficulty.

Women empowerment: Inequality exists between men and women for cultural, economic, political, and other reasons. This affects the well-being of women and girls throughout the life cycle. Digital literacy and internet access can be good solutions to this inequality by promoting education and employment opportunities for girls and women.