Kerala Fibre Optical Network
News:
The Kerala government officially launched the KFON project.
News:
- KFON or Kerala Fibre Optical Network seeks to provide high speed broadband internet access to all the houses and government buildings in the state.
Why:
- To reduce digital divide
- To aid e-governance
- To aid the state’s transformation into a knowledge-based economy
How:
- KFON will function as an infrastructure provider, with its 30,000 km long fibre cable network and 375 Points-of-Presence across the state.
- This infrastructure will be shared with service providers like cable operators.
- KFON will take care of cable work for government offices. However, individual beneficiaries are to depend on the local private internet service providers.
- In its 1st stage, the network will cover 30,000 government offices and 14,000 BPL families.
- With respect to the internet quality:
- Internet speed: 10 mbps to 10 Gbps.
- Plans to transition to 4G and 5G, once KFON is connected to mobile towers
Who:
- A flagship project of Kerala government
- It is a joint venture of:
- Kerala State Electricity Board
- Kerala State IIT Infrastructure Limited
- The project is funded by Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board.
When:
- KFON established in 2017.
- Works started in 2019.
Facts:
- Kerala is the 1st state to declare ‘right to internet’ as a basic right.
