Railway PSU RailTel formally launched its paid wi-fi service plans on Thursday which will enable users to access high-speed internet at 4,000 railway stations across the country.
RailTel already provides free wi-fi service at more than 5,950 stations in the country, and the facility can be availed by anyone with a smartphone and an active connection after an OTP-based verification. With the launch of these prepaid plans, a passenger can now use up to 30 minutes" free wi-fi per day at 1 mbps speed. But for higher speed of up to 34mbps, a user will need to choose a plan at a nominal fee.
The plans include ₹ 10 for 5 GB data in a day, ₹ 15 for 10 GB data in a day, ₹ 20 for 10 GB data valid for five days, ₹ 30 for 20 GB data valid for five days, ₹ 40 for 20 GB data valid for 10 days, ₹ 50 for 30 GB data valid for 10 days and ₹ 70 for 60 GB data valid for 30 days.
"We did a detailed trial run of Prepaid Wi-Fi at 20 stations in Uttar Pradesh and based on the response and detailed testing, we have launched this plan at 4,000+ more stations across India. We intend to launch the prepaid plans for all the stations with our RailWire Wi-Fi this financial year," said RailTel CMD Puneet Chawla.
The plans have been designed to offer a flexible choice to users as per their needs. A number of payment options like net banking, e-wallet, and credit cards can be used to purchase the plans online, he said. Chawla said that before COVID-19, more than three crore people were using the service monthly. Once the situation normalises and footfall at stations becomes regular, a revenue of ₹ 10-15 crore annually is expected from the paid wi-fi service, he added.
CommentsIndian Railway is the largest public transporter of the nation, and railway stations are melting pots of the whole cross-section of the society. Passengers use this wi-fi facility for streaming high definition (HD) videos, downloading movies, songs, games and do their office work online. The service has tremendously benefitted railway passengers, particularly the rural population. PTI
