The Financial Express : Dec 19, 2019, 05:32 PM
Delhi free WiFi Scheme: On a day when mobile phone services across Delhi were suspended in view of the massive protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act, the Aam Aadmi Party government on Thursday fulfilled a long-pending election promise by launching free WiFi service in the city. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal launched the service from a bus stop in central Delhi’s ITO, while his deputy Manish Sisodia inaugurated the scheme from the Delhi University area. Both the leaders launched the much-awaited scheme by having a video chat over free WiFi hotspot from their respective locations.“This is a big step towards making Delhi a modern world-class city,” Kejriwal told mediapersons, and added that it was ‘paradoxical’ that internet services were shut by authorities today. The AAP government has in 2015 promised free WiFi across Delhi. Now, ahead of the Assembly elections, the party has gone ahead to fulfill the promise it made. As per the scheme, 11,000 WiFi spots will be established across the capital city.Mobile services were shut at ITO, which houses offices of several national newspapers and other media houses apart from Delhi Police headquarters, in view of the anti-CAA protests. The Delhi Police also asked telecom companies to suspend voice, SMS and internet services in walled city areas of North and Central districts, Mandi House, Seelampur, Jaffarabad, Mustafabad, Jamia Nagar, Shaheen Bagh and Bawana areas.Earlier in the day, several protesters, including activist and former AAP leader Yogendra Yadav were detained from near Red Fort as they tried to hold agitation near the historic monument.Prominent Left leaders Sitaram Yechury, D Raja, Nilotpal Basu, Brinda Karat and others were also detained at Mandi House during anti-CAA protest.