Google, Railtel launches free public Wi-Fi service at Mumbai Central Station

Google India and Indian Railways’ telecom arm RailTel has launched free Rail Wire Public Wi-Fi service for railway passengers at the Mumbai Central Station.
This service was launched by Union Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu. With this, Mumbai Central has become the first railway station in India to have free high-speed Wi-Fi Internet facility.
Key facts

• Railwire Wi-Fi Service will be available to any user (passenger) having Wi-Fi enabled smart phones.
• Users can easily stream research their destination, surf high definition video while they’re waiting or save some videos for offline viewing download e books for the journey.
• Security: Users can use this facility after authenticating their cell phone number by entering a four digit OTP (One Time Password) sent to their smart phone via SMS.

Background

• The public Wi-Fi project for Indian Railways was announced in September 2015 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to Google headquarters in Mountain View, California.
• In the initial phase, this free will be made available at 100 of the busiest railway stations and later on extended to 400 stations across the country.

Month: Current Affairs - January, 2016