Odisha
government has planned to convert its capital city, Bhubaneshwar into a ‘Smart
City.’ Supporting this initiative, Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Jio Infocomm
Limited rolled out its 4G Wi-Fi service in the city.
Wi-Fi
service in Bhubaneshwar
The
high-speed internet services are offered at four locations in Bhubaneshwar. The
service is known as ‘Jionet’ and is being deployed at the campus of Orissa
University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT), and areas of Surya Nagar,
Gopabandhu Chowk and Governor House Road. These areas have popular spots like
ICICI Bank, Gopabandhu market complex and Reliance Fresh retail outlet, where a
lot of people visit. The company has installed 27 access points in these four
areas. Around 1,000 people will be able to connect to the service at a single
time.
People visiting these areas will
get the privilege of accessing high-speed wireless connectivity on their
smartphones and tablets. The 4G service will be provided free of cost to the
users till the time it is commercially launched. Reliance Jio has planned its
official launch in December, this year.
A spokesperson from the company
said, “High-speed data connectivity is one of the foundations on which future
prosperity of cities and nations will be built.” He expressed that the company
sees an immense pride in being associated with the government's Smart City
initiative. Reliance Jio is offering its high-speed ‘Jionet’ service at
Bhubaneshwar as the company wants people to experience the digital ecosystem. The
digital framework consists of high-speed data networks, rich content and
exclusively designed applications. This experience will help people realize how
the service can uplift their lives.
Reliance Jio will use the feedback
received from the users in these locations to fix the loopholes in its
services. This will help the company to improve its services before the formal
launch. Besides, the company will also be able to efficiently operate Wi-Fi and
Long Term Evolution (LTE) network, post the initiation of 4G LTE services.
Services in other cities
Two weeks ago, the company launched its 4G Wi-Fi service in Hazratganj
area of Lucknow. It became India’s first market in a non-metro to get unlimited
access to high-speed Wi-Fi network. This service is offered for free of cost.
The network has been set up through fiber optics. The Wi-Fi service will cover
a radius of 100 meters on both sides of the MG Marg, from GPO crossing to
Parivartan Chowk.
The 4G Wi-Fi networks will offer a speed of 5-10 Mbps to the users. On
the other hand, the 3G Wi-Fi networks provide a speed of 2-3 Mbps. Users may
access the Wi-FI service by entering the 'one-time password' (OTP) they
receive. After 20 minutes, the user will be logged out automatically. The OTP
needs to be re-entered to log in again. An OTP has a validity of 24 hours.
Reliance Jio has launched similar pilot projects in cities of Gujarat
including Ahmedabad, and tony Park Street area of Kolkata in West Bengal.
Summary
Reliance Jio
has
launched its free 4G Wi-Fi service at four places in Bhubaneshwar, supporting
Odisha government’s ‘Smart City’ initiative.