Tarun Karthick
Campbell Bay, 23 April 2021
Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd. has signed an agreement with Universal Service Obligation Fund for Provision of Mobile Services Based on 4G Technology in Identified Uncovered Villages and Seamless Mobile Coverage Along National Highways in Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
The agreement states that Reliance Jio will provide 4G based mobile services through 124 mobile towers in uncovered villages of Andaman and Nicobar Islands and along the National Highways to provide seamless mobile coverage.
Out of the 124 mobile towers 82 sites have been listed in the agreement to provide 4G Mobile Services to 85 villages.
Out of the 82 sites listed in the agreement 23 sites for installation of the mobile towers to provide 4G mobile services lies in the Nicobar District.
Out of the 23 sites in Nicobar District 16 sites for installation of the mobile tower lies under Great Nicobar Sub Division and 07 sites in Nancowry Sub Division.
The remotest villages falling under the Great Nicobar and Nancowry Sub Division has been considered for installation of tower to provide seamless 4G mobile connectivity.
| SITES UNDER GREAT NICOBAR SUB DIVISION FOR JIO 4G TOWER INSTALLATION | ||
| S.No | Name of the Site | Effective population as per USOF Agreement |
| 1 | Makachua | 67 |
| 2 | Pulomilo | – |
| 3 | Afra Bay | 138 |
| 4 | Alexandera River | 47 |
| 5 | Chingen (Incl FC at Magarnallah) | 12 |
| 6 | Kakeon | 20 |
| 7 | Lawful | 20 |
| 8 | Laxmi Nagar | 230 |
| 9 | Patisang | 13 |
| 10 | Pulopattia | 11 |
| 11 | Puloulo | 81 |
| 12 | Pulobha | 52 |
| 13 | Pulopanja | 52 |
| 14 | Shompen Hut | 63 |
| 15 | Shompen Hut Village-A | 10 |
| 16 | Shompen Hut Village-B |
| SITES UNDER NANCOWRY SUB DIVISION FOR JIO 4G TOWER INSTALLATION | ||
| S.No | Name of the Site | Effective population as per USOF Agreement |
| 1 | Luxi | 149 |
| 2 | Chanel/Chanol | 13 |
| 3 | Daring | 115 |
| 4 | Enam | 223 |
| 5 | Kalasi | 335 |
| 6 | Tapong Incl Kabila | 270 |
| 7 | Tillang Chong Island | 38 |
The agreement is dated 15th of March 2021 and the roll out period is 12 months which stipulates that all these remote uncovered villages of Nicobar District will be connected with 4G mobile voice and data services by 15th of March 2022.
Connecting these remote uncovered villages with 4G voice and data services will prove to be very beneficial for the local population living there.
The technical specifications as specified for installation of towers by USOF is tower height of 45 Meter GBT; Carrier Power of minimum 20 Watts per sector depending on the population and coverage required; Minimum Radial Coverage of 4 Km for normal conditions. The data rate should be minimum 512 Kbps for single user at the edge of the cell boundary.
This project of USOF is quite impressive and will surely be a boon for the residents of the remotest villages of Nicobar District.