Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) is set to bring all public places under free WiFi coverage from the next month, allowing residents to get uninterrupted internet access, officials said.
To facilitate such civic amenity in the era of information of technology, the city corporation will sign an agreement with the state-owned Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited (BTCL) next week.
Contacted, deputy chief revenue officer Saidur Rahman said 50 key public places of the south have been brought under the free internet coverage.
"Almost everything has been completed. We're planning to introduce the service from early next month (February). The BTCL is taking care of the technical aspects of it through a vendor."
About accessibility of the service, he said as long as an interested user is within the range of the signal from the south city's hotspot, they can avail the network through their device and use internet. No password or network key will be required.
"In fact, we want to make daily life of our people smooth, which was one of the commitments of the Mayor. That's why, we took up the initiative," he added.
Another DSCC official said that the city corporation has already implemented the service at Lalbagh Fort and Sadarghat Launch Terminal and it will sign an agreement with BTCL next week bringing remaining places under uninterrupted internet coverage.
When asked whether the users could avail the service in 24 hours, he said each user would get free WiFi an hour a day.
Though BTCL proposed providing one-time log in facility, it was later turned down by the corporation.
"One user can log in as many times as he/she wants but usage limit is 60 minutes. If they cross the limit, they will have to pay in line with the current rate charged by the telecom companies," he said.
Important places under Dhaka south where free WiFi will be available included Bangabandhu Museum, Bangabandhu Avenue, Russell Square, Central Shaheed Minar, Aporajeyo Bangla, Ahsan Manzil, Karjan Hall, Kamalapur railway station, Bahadur Shah Park, Osmani Uddyan, Ramna Park, Balda Garden, Central Shishu Park, Dhanmondi Lake, Mohanagar Naittya Manch, Science Annex Bhaban, Nagar Bhaban, DSCC Zone-2, Zone-3, and Zone-5, Sayedabad Bus Terminal, Fulbaria bus terminal and Sadarghat launch terminal.
