How the Government of India’s PM WANI scheme works

A program for the proliferation of public Wi-Fi networks through the PM Wi-Fi Access Network Interface or PM WANI system was approved by the government last week. The program seeks to improve the country's wireless internet access. This will require a full system with multiple elements—Public Data Office (PDO), Aggregators of Public Data Office, and providers of software.

"No license, no registration, and no fee would be applicable for the PDOs, which could be small shops or even Common Service Centres," communications, electronics, and IT minister Shankar Prasad said on Wednesday.

Key Features of the PM WANI

PM-operating WANI's ecosystem will include the following:

Public Data Office (PDO): This will set up, manage, and run Wi-Fi Access Points that are compatible with WANI and provide customers with broadband services.

Public Data Office Aggregator (PDOA): It will carry out critical authorization and accounting functions as an aggregator of PDOs.

App Provider: It will build a user login app and help discover nearby Wi-Fi hotspots compatible with WANI. In order to access the internet connection, these areas will be shown in the app.

Central Registry: The goal is to protect the data of PDOAs, PDOs, and providers of software. The Central Registry will initially be maintained by the Centre for Telematics Development (C-DoT).

PM WANI

PM-WANI is intended to be business-friendly and complement the ease of doing business initiatives of the government.

The COVID-19 pandemic and the disruptions it caused have made it clear that it is necessary to provide high-speed broadband internet to customers, even in areas where 4G mobile coverage is not available. This is where it would come in handy for a public Wi-Fi network provider like PM-WANI.

In addition to creating jobs, such a public Wi-Fi network would increase the disposable income of small and medium-sized entrepreneurs, which the government claims, will have a positive effect on GDP in turn.

Crucially, for the provision of broadband Internet services, there is no licensing fee. The abundance of public Wi-Fi hotspots across the length and breadth of the country are expected to promote this.

The WANI framework provides an elegant way forward for low-income consumers to be linked. It opens up opportunities to tap into a whole new ecosystem for community groups, libraries, educational institutions, panchayats, and small businesses, buying bandwidth to serve local customers from a public data office aggregator. Robust service, the preservation of data privacy, openness in the commercial use of data, and security against cyber-attacks are what people expect. To avoid monopolies, the government must also ensure the true unbundling of hardware, software applications, and payment gateways in the WANI scheme, as advocated by TRAI. Current public Wi-Fi options run by some organizations on a limited scale require users to pay through a single gateway app, demonstrating the need for change. If properly executed, PM WANI's public data offices (PDOs) could do what the PCOs did for phone calls, moving far beyond 'ease of doing business' to motivate people truly.