Google announces plan to provide WiFi coverage in 400 Indian train stations

India may well have one of the world’s fastest growing smartphone markets, but internet access can be a little patchy, both in terms of coverage and in speed. But that could be about to change, with the announcement that Google, in partnership with Indian Railways and RailTel, will provide high-speed WiFi in 400 train stations across India. The announcement coincided with the visit of Narendra Modi, the Indian Prime Minister, to the GooglePlex. 

The plan is to provide WiFi access to 100 of India’s busiest stations before the end of 2016, providing WiFi access to more than 10 million commuters every day. The remaining 300 stations will follow suit soon afterwards. To put the numbers into perspective, in the last year alone, 100 million people in India accessed the internet for the first time while there are an estimated 1 billion people in India who aren’t online. It’s easy to see why Google want a piece of the action, especially considering it’s Android One initiative that began in India.

Google has promised that the bandwidth of the WiFi coverage will be strong enough to carry high-definition video, download videos offline, or to research their destination. While the WiFi coverage will initially be free-of-charge, the long-term goal is to make it self-sufficient, thus allowing for further expansion.

Source: GoogleBlog

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