The government of Kerala has announced that its Kerala fibre optic network (K-FON) project, which seeks to provide free internet connectivity to the poor, will be launched on June 5, 2023. As per the government, around 2 million families that are economically backward will be provided with the service free of cost. K-FON will be available to others at an affordable rate.
According to Pinarayi Vijayan, Chief Minister of Kerala, currently 18,000 government offices in the state have been provided with internet facilities through the Rs 15 billion-K-FON project. The minister informed that the basic infrastructure facilities to provide internet to 7,000 houses have been completed. 748 houses have been given connection.
Further, Vijayan added that the government has planned K-FON in order to stop the exploitation by private cable and mobile service providers. The project, which will be implemented through the state electricity and IT departments, will help the state overcome the digital divide. K-FON is Kerala’s own internet service which will help strengthen the digital infrastructure in the state.
A consortium of public-sector companies including Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) and RailTel, along with certain private companies, is executing the project.
