The KFON initiative envisions a network of 35,000 km of optical fibre across 14 districts in the state and aims to create a network infrastructure to support free internet services.
September 3, 2022
The Kerala Fiber Optic Network (KFON) initiative has received the Internet Service Provider (ISP) licence from the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), Ministry of Communications. After operating for three years, the initiative has attained the licence, which has made Kerala the only Indian state with its own internet access.
“Kerala becomes the only state in the country with its own internet service. The Kerala Fiber Optic Network Ltd has received the ISP licence from DoT. Now, our prestigious KFON project can kickstart its operations of providing internet as a basic right to our people,” Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said in a tweet.
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The initiative, which was announced in 2019, envisions an optical fibre network spanning across 35,000 km in 14 districts of Kerala. Presently, 30,000 km of optical fibre cable (OFC) has been already laid and 375 points of presence (PoP) are installed in the state. What’s more, the initiative has been successful in connecting 5,000 government offices and 25,000 government institutions to the network.
The core aim of the initiative is to develop a network infrastructure that enables free internet access to 20 lakh economically backward households. The ambitious flagship program, spearheaded by the Chief Minister, also aims to connect all government offices, educational institutions, and hospitals, as well as partner with telecom service providers (TSPs) to improve their connectivity gap.
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In addition, every service and certification offered by several departments of the Government of Kerala will be available and accessible on a single platform by next year, says Mr. Santhosh Babu, Chief Mission Director, Information Kerala Mission (IKM).
