Postal Network of Kerala
Indian postal system is the largest in the World with a network of about 1.55 lakh Post Offices, of which 1.39 lakh (89.78 per cent) are in rural areas and 15,826 (10.22 per cent) in urban areas of the country. The postal network consists of four categories of post offices namely, Head Post Offices, sub Post Offices, extra departmental sub Post Offices and extra departmental Branch Post Offices.
Kerala Postal circle includes the entire State of Kerala, the Union Territory of Lakshadweep and Mahe under the Union Territory of Puducherry. Kerala is the only postal circle where every village has at least one post office. As of August 31, 2017, there are 5,065 post offices in the circle, of which 1,457 are Departmental post offices and 3,557 Extra Departmental post offices. On average each post office in the State serves an area of 7.69 sq. km and a population of 6,610 as against the national average of 21.21 sq. km and a population of 7,175 people. In total, 83 per cent of the post offices are located in rural areas. Major Activities of Kerala Postal Circle is given in Box 5.15.
As a result of these initiatives, Post Offices in Kerala have improved their functioning as a citizen hub. Every citizen now has access to this hub close to his/her doorstep. Details are shown in Appendices 5.36, 5.37, 5.38, and 5.39.
Telecommunications
Telecommunication is one of the prime support services needed for rapid growth and modernisation of the economy. The telecommunication service in India has improved significantly since independence. Kerala telecom circles serve the whole of Kerala State, the Union Territory of Lakshadweep and part of Union Territory of Puducherry (Mahe). The circle has 11 major Secondary Switching Areas (SSAs) and one minor SSA of Lakshadweep. The status of telecom sector in Kerala is given in Box 5.16. More details are given in Appendix 5.40.
Communication Infrastructure
Core infrastructure for e-governance in the State consists of Kerala State Wide Area Network (KSWAN), Secretariat Wide Area Network, State Data Centre, State Service Delivery Gateway and public WiFi project. KSWAN is the backbone of the State Information Infrastructure (SII), connecting Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi and Kozhikode and extending to 14 districts and 152 block Panchayats of the State. The Network will also connect 3,500 offices of government departments through wireless and a large number through leased lines and Local Area Network. KSWAN is seamlessly integrated with two State Data Centres which enable the network to provide large number of government to government, government to citizens’ services hosted in State Data Centres to the government institutions through a secure intranet.
New Initiative 2017
Government of Kerala has announced setting up of State’s own communication infrastructure, namely K-FON, Kerala Fibre Optic Network in the State, to enhance communication in rural areas, provide high speed connectivity to all government and educational institutions and offer internet to the economically backward community of the State. The universal basic internet facility will be made available to all citizens and government machinery through a new optic fibre pathway created in parallel to KSEB electric power network. Administrative sanction was accorded for 1,028.20 crore and Detailed Project Report has been approved by Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB) for 823.00 crore.