Suresh Prabhu to inaugurate free Wi-Fi service at seven stations in Mumbai today: Updated

Update: IANS reported that 8 stations, instead of the previously mentioned seven will start free Wi-Fi service. The new addition to the list is Kalyan Station in Thane district. Union railway minister, Suresh Prabhu will inaugurate free Wi-Fi service today for the lakhs of commuters using the Mumbai suburban railway network. The commuters will be able to access free Wi-Fi service on seven stations that include Churchgate, Dadar, Bandra, Bandra Terminus, Khar, Lokmanya Tilak Terminus. The users can access the internet at full speed for the first 30 minutes after which the speeds will drop. Commuters need to register their mobile number with the private telecom operator. The telecom operator will then send them a one-time-password (OTP) via SMS. The OTP then can be used to login to use the service for 30 minutes. As reported by Hindustan Times, Railway authorities have not worked out a monetary framework or any payment modalities. Instead, they are keeping the service free of charge for the time being. The railway minister, Suresh Prabhu will also be inaugurating other facilities like the air-conditioned dormitory at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, booking counter at Borivali along with foot-over-bridges at Reay Road, Kurla, Chembur, Karjat, and Shahad. The service may not be much but it marks a significant step forward for the government as well as the Digital India campaign by Prime Minister Modi. Earlier this year in May, Suresh Prabhu launched free Wi-fi service at the railway stations at Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh, Raipur in Chhattisgarh and Kacheguda in Telengana via videoconferencing in New Delhi. The service was commissioned by RailTel, a mini Ratna public sector undertaking, in association with Google for providing high-speed Internet to the commuters at these places.