Travellers can avail Wi-Fi facility at more railway stations falling under the Tiruchi Railway Division soon.
Wi-Fi is to be offered at various stations including Puducherry, Velankanni, Nagapattinam, Nagore, Vriddhachalam Junction, Ariyalur, Pattukottai, Mannargudi, Vaitheeswaran Koil, Tiruverumbur, Kuttalam and Ulundurpet.
Infrastructure works required for putting in place the facility were currently under way at the 36 identified stations in Tiruchi Division where over 50 stations already have the connectivity, said a senior railway official.
Executing agency
The RailTel Corporation, a public sector undertaking owning a Pan-India optic fibre network along railway tracks, is the executing agency of the project which is being carried out through Tata Trusts which is on the task of establishing the necessary technical infrastructure at the chosen stations, said the officials.
The works were being carried out expeditiously with the aim of commissioning the facility in a couple of months. The Southern Railway administration is providing the necessary support for the introduction of the facility in 36 more stations, the official said.
The facility would enable passengers access the internet free of cost for a limited time duration while waiting at the platform for the train after which it would be charged for further usage as per the existing mechanism.
The Ministry of Railways in its action plan that was unveiled recently has proposed to provide Wi-Fi at several railway stations across the country within 100 days.
As per a railway communication, the Wi-Fi facility exists at 1,603 stations across the country at present and the plan is to provide the connectivity in over 4,800 stations through private and government agencies.
In respect of Tiruchi Railway Division, the facility is already available in stations including Tiruchi, Srirangam, Chidambaram, Tiruchi Fort, Vellore Cantonment, Thanjavur, Kumbakonam, Villupuram, Mayiladuthurai, Karaikal, Tiruvarur, Nidamangalam and Sirkazhi. The extension of the facility to more stations in the division would now increase the tally to 88.
