Can someone please identify the source of this news??
Internet cafe owners logged out in Solapur, Maharashtra
Internet cafe owners in the city are sore with the ‘lack of cooperation and poor internet connectivity’ from Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL). Especially hit are those who started their business by taking bank loans.
The BSNL introduced broadband service in August, attracting most of the internet cafe owners. While a few of them opted for the 256 kbps offer, others went in for the 1 Megabyte and 2 Megabyte service. But today, many of them feel let down by BSNL after facing repeated disconnection without prior notice. The one person who is responsible for the internet section of the BSNL is often not traceable.
‘‘Our internet service has been disconnected and we have been forwarded vague reasons, like the disconnection was from Delhi or Bangalore. We are tired of the department,’’ lamented one internet cafe owner.
‘‘For the last three weeks, we have been facing connectivity problems in the service line, low speeds and constant disconnection. We have lost almost 80 per cent of our regular customers this month,’’ he maintained and added that he was unable to pay charges for the BSNL connection and the installments to repay his loan.
On Wednesday, a delegation of internet cafe owners handed over a memorandum to BSNL authorities and aired their grievances, demanding prompt restoration of internet services. They also demanded a waiver of charges for October, as there was no service on most of the days. BSNL gets around Rs 1 lakh in revenue from internet cafes as it charges Rs 9,000 for 2 MB and Rs 5,000 for 1 MB connections per month.
Private users too have come forward with complaints against BSNL. Rahul Manthalkar, a regular user, says he failed to get connectivity at home and hence opted to go to a cafe. But that too proved useless, and he says, ‘‘I don’t know where to complain. BSNL should cancel the service if it can’t provide proper service.’’ Vaibhav Kulkarni, a sales manager in a private company, said that there was little choice left but to shift to the more expensive Reliance Web World.[/b]
Internet cafe owners logged out in Solapur, Maharashtra
Internet cafe owners in the city are sore with the ‘lack of cooperation and poor internet connectivity’ from Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL). Especially hit are those who started their business by taking bank loans.
The BSNL introduced broadband service in August, attracting most of the internet cafe owners. While a few of them opted for the 256 kbps offer, others went in for the 1 Megabyte and 2 Megabyte service. But today, many of them feel let down by BSNL after facing repeated disconnection without prior notice. The one person who is responsible for the internet section of the BSNL is often not traceable.
‘‘Our internet service has been disconnected and we have been forwarded vague reasons, like the disconnection was from Delhi or Bangalore. We are tired of the department,’’ lamented one internet cafe owner.
‘‘For the last three weeks, we have been facing connectivity problems in the service line, low speeds and constant disconnection. We have lost almost 80 per cent of our regular customers this month,’’ he maintained and added that he was unable to pay charges for the BSNL connection and the installments to repay his loan.
On Wednesday, a delegation of internet cafe owners handed over a memorandum to BSNL authorities and aired their grievances, demanding prompt restoration of internet services. They also demanded a waiver of charges for October, as there was no service on most of the days. BSNL gets around Rs 1 lakh in revenue from internet cafes as it charges Rs 9,000 for 2 MB and Rs 5,000 for 1 MB connections per month.
Private users too have come forward with complaints against BSNL. Rahul Manthalkar, a regular user, says he failed to get connectivity at home and hence opted to go to a cafe. But that too proved useless, and he says, ‘‘I don’t know where to complain. BSNL should cancel the service if it can’t provide proper service.’’ Vaibhav Kulkarni, a sales manager in a private company, said that there was little choice left but to shift to the more expensive Reliance Web World.[/b]
