Sambalpur: The Union Government has launched the high-speed fifth generation (5G) telecom services in the state from Thursday. Initially, the services will be available in Cuttack and Bhubaneswar. Later, the services will be extended to Puri, Sambalpur, Berhampur, and some other towns by February-end, telecom officials had said during the launch. However, doubts have surfaced over the availability of 5G services in many parts of Odisha due to the lack of infrastructure.
Providing 5G services in all parts of Sambalpur district is a distant dream, locals pointed out. They said remote areas of Sambalpur district do not have the type of infrastructure required for providing 5G services. There are hundreds of villages in the district where mobile network, leaving aside from 5G, is not available. People have lodged complaints with the district administration in this regard, but their pleas are yet to be addressed. Residents of Sambalpur district said that even 2G services are not properly available. Sources said that Tamparsingha under Meghapal panchayat of Jujumura block in the district is a tribal-dominated region and infested by Maoists. The area lacks cellular network services except in some places.
As a result, people have to travel a minimum of two kilometres to make a phone call. People have been demanding for installation of a mobile tower in Panimara panchayat of Naktideula block for quite some time now, but nothing has materialised. People traveling on the Redhakhole-Naktideula road also have to struggle to establish mobile connections in and around the Daincha panchayat. Officials of the office of the Wildlife Department in Badrama area under Jamankira block said that the area is completely out of network coverage. They stated that they have to carry their laptops for three kilometres to get an internet connection and do official work. People also pointed out that villages which are 40-50 kilometres away from this town face great difficulty in getting mobile connections. The residents of Bamra block are the worst hit over mobile network issues. A person wishing to make an emergency call has to travel to a place where a network is available. The mobile connectivity in the area is so low that people cannot even make a call or get internet services. The students feel the pinch during online classes.
A few months back, pictures of students climbing on water tanks and trees to get internet service on their mobile phones were published by various media houses and the issue triggered a huge row. Sudipta Patel of Bamra block said that they have towers of two private firms, but even then connectivity suffers. Patel stated that the government should first ensure the availability of round-the-clock mobile connectivity in the area before talking about 5G services. Mita Majhi, samiti member of Jamankira block said several BSNL towers in the block are lying unused. They should be utiliaed properly to provide proper mobile connectivity in the locality, she added.