Internet connectivity

Current estimates show that out of India’s 1.2 Billion population, only 600
million are connected to the Internet. This creates a huge barrier for
students (especially in rural areas) to access online education during this
lockdown.

Problems
An open-air class for students, who lack electronic devices to attend online
classes | Photo: Amarjit Kumar Singh | Bloomberg | Anadolu Agency via Getty
Images
The survey, which was released last year, mapped 1.52 lakh students in 1.13 lakh households, spread across
8,000 villages and 6,000 urban blocks

Drop-out
Just 4 per cent of the rural households have access
01
to computers, compared to 23 per cent of urban
households.

rate out of 02 Moreover, 14.9 per cent of rural and 42 per cent

schools
of urban households have internet access.

(Survey) 03 These survey also looks at the proportion of people

who can operate technology. In rural households,
9.9 per cent students are able to operate a
computer, 13 per cent are able to use the internet.
 The survey notes that 15 per cent students complete their secondary
04
education while in urban households, 19 per cent do so.

The survey notes that the dropout rate in both rural and urban areas were significant,
05
especially for the upper primary and secondary school levels. It stood at 18 and 20 per cent
respectively for rural, and 15 and 17 per cent for urban.
Measures
EdTech
EdTech companies should start creating education
materials in the major vernacular languages in India. 

NGOs
Several rights groups and NGOs have taken this approach — from
reading rooms to distributing books directly to homes — attempting to
fill the gaps left by online education. 
Measures
Doordarshan
Doordarshan has been providing educational content via their
channels Gyan Darshan & Vyas.

YouTube
For those students with basic internet connectivity, teachers could
record their lectures and upload them on YouTube which does not
require a fast broadband connection.
 Solutions
Swayam Portal
The government should more widely
publicize the free educational content
they have on their portal Swayam, as a
vast number of Indians may not be
aware of it.

Data plans
If the Indian government wants to truly
enable online education for all, it should
consider supplying free basic smartphones
and data plans for under resourced people
in rural areas.
Tax Breaks
It could even offer tax breaks for
companies and individuals to
donate funds for these much-
needed devices and data. 
 Conclusion
Regardless of what happens post covid19, the importance of facilitating online education for every Indian
has been pushed to the forefront. Only with the combined efforts of the government, NGOs, EdTech
companies and educational institutions can this be made successful.
Thank you !!