Staff Reporter
The facility of free Punjab Wi-Fi installed for the convenience of citizens is active and functional. This was stated by Chairman PITB Azfar Manzoor. This facility is available in public buildings, hospitals, education institutes, parks, government offices, and markets, etc.
The Punjab government remains fully committed to the provision of free WiFi to the citizens and will expand the facility to the whole of Punjab as part of the Digital Punjab vision, stated Chairman PITB.
Earlier, the Punjab government was announced the permanent closure of free Wi-Fi in the province apparently to get rid of the heavy subsidy it had to pay for its provision to the public.
The Punjab Wi-Fi project aimed at provision of free internet service to the public at 200 different places of the province was launched in Dec 2016 by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government.
The purpose of setting up public Wi-Fi hotspots in the province was to bridge the digital divide by providing free, easy and reliable internet access at major public places.
The Punjab Information Technology Board (PITB) had set up 250 free Wi-Fi hotspots in Lahore, Rawalpindi, Faisalabad, Multan, Bahawalpur and Murree districts. The Wi-Fi hotspots were set up at educational and government buildings, public parks, markets, hospitals, railway stations, airports and bus stations.
