This was how a reader responded when Indian Express online carried a story on the dissemination of the findings of LIRNEasia’s broadband research at the GRT Grand Hotel convention centre in Chennai on November 3.

Another story in ‘The Hindu’ quoted Timothy Gonsalves PhD, Head of Computer Science and Engineering Department, IIT-Madras, our research partner from IIT Madras saying the implication [of the latency introduced by complex routing of network traffic] for consumers is that though a user may get close to the speeds advertised by the operator while accessing servers within India, the download speeds from an international server for even a supposedly fast broadband connection would only be in the 200 kbps range.

The event was attended by broadband operators, users and researchers. Helani Galpaya, Chanuka Wattegama and Timothy Gonsalves, PhD made presentations while Ashok Jhunjhunwala, PhD chaired the panel discussion.

Apart from the reported, the following were stories published by Indian, Sri Lanka and UK media.

“Broadband speed suffers most in accessing international servers” – The Hindu

Sri Lankan broadband users getting less: study – Lanka Business Online

South Asian broadband stuck in international bottleneck: study – Lanka Business Online

Developed countries getting better value from broadband – top 10 broadband

Sri Lanka’s broadband shows over advertising and under delivery – Sunday Times, Sri Lanka

“The challenge for mobile operators is to make a remittance service as simple as handing over the money and a slip, with hand-written transfer details, to a bank clerk,” said the study. On average, a Sri Lankan migrant sends home US $ 137 per month. The most common method of remittance is through the banking system. In addition, some either carried money home as cash, or sent cash or cheques, in the post. However, these methods were used by less than 25% of migrants. As much as 84% of Sri Lankan migrants had bank accounts. Over half of Sri Lankan recent migrants surveyed (54 %), also owned a mobile phone.

In recent years they have designed projects such as 3R which stands for the three-fold environmental concept of reduce, reuse and recycle, and several other environment related projects. Their current focus is on the environment to be in tow with the United Nation’s (UN) Millennium Development Goals (MDG).

A 3R Community Programme was launched recently, organised by the Project Executive Hemamali Rajapaksa, which is a scheme that undertakes environmental conservation related activity on religious holidays.

In an effort to reduce the litter of polythene bags at Adam’s Peak (also known as Sripadaya), the girl guides gave the pilgrims cloth bags in exchange for their polythene bags on April 4-5. According to Hemamali the project was an incredible success and workers at Adam’s Peak were so impressed by the dedication of the girls who carried out their duties in the rain, they volunteered to continue the effort.

“We tend to work in trienniums, national, regional and world level. The Girl Guides is a world movement and a lot of what we do is centered around what is set at a world level. In 2007 we started a new triennium, and since at world level they have implemented a global action theme as they have committed themselves to working with the United Nations, supporting their Millennium Development Goals, we are focusing on the current goal- goal 7 of the UN MGD, which is to ‘Ensure Environmental Sustainability’. Our corresponding gat message is that girls across the world say ‘we can save our planet,’ specially now with the drastic climate change.

Read the full article here.

In its full color advertisement in today’s Sunday Times, Lanka Bell claims paying users for incoming calls is a new chapter in Telecom history. Is it? May be in Sri Lanka. But we have already discussed similar strategies elsewhere.

In a letter dated October 10, 2008 to TRC Director General Priyantha Kariyapperuma – copied to The Sunday Times – Mr. Nanayakkara states that ‘OPA’s experts in their presentation to the TRC, around March 2008, explained and established that the TRC’s tariff proposal recommended to the SC is flawed mathematically and technically and that it is in violation of the provisions in the Sri Lanka.

In particular, Mr. Nanayakkara writes that the TRC did not put up to the SC that the per-line operating costs of the SLT since its privatization in 1998 has been declining at around 15% per annum. The TRC also provided disinformation to the SC, to conceal the urgent need arising from above, to update the outdated X factor of price cap CPI – X. The X factor is not a one-time set value. Its regular revision is an essential requirement that underpins its core aim which is to sustain market competitiveness in the fact of advancing technology and declining costs, the letter said.

Further, Mr. Nanayakkara said the TRC also did not inform the SC of the abrupt suspension of this license condition in 1997, on the unjust insistence of Nippon Telephone and Telegraph (NTT), at the time it entered into a joint agreement with SLT, which stalled reduction of tariffs. The TRC also did inform the SC that it failed to revise X in 2002 when the suspension was terminated in 2002 and the Government took measures to revamp the market competitiveness.

Read the full report in ‘Sunday Times’ here.

I was at the National Book Exhibition at BMICH on September 12, 2007 evening when a tsunami alert was broadcast.  It created instant chaos. I did not have access to a TV or a radio. By then the mobile voice channels were congested.

So it was SMS that I used to:

(a) Find accurate updates about the alert
(b) Make sure my family members are safe and
(c) Inform my family that I am safe

All above was critical for me to decide on my next steps. I did that within 10 minutes, learnt it was low risk, decided to shop for some more time (anyway they closed early on that day) and went home avoiding rush hour traffic.

I dare not to think what I would have done if SMS services were cut off at that very moment. I would be helpless having a communication device in my hand that does not connect me to anybody.

But that is exactly what the Sri Lanka Telecom Regulator plans to do, as I learn from this Sunday Times news item. It quotes DG of Telecom Regulatory Commission saying, “This is simply due to the understanding between the phone service providers. There were many text messages which were going around creating unnecessary public fear. The TRC works closely with these operators and they are ready to support and take preventive measures in situations like this”

Are rumours the only information passed by SMSs? Is SMS the only channel that spread rumours? Do we have to cut the neck of the goat to take its head out of the pot?

Rural BPO at Mahavilachchiya received wide publicity yesterday, with several local newspapers prominently highlighting the to-be-success story like Sunday Times did below in a first page half page article, and a finance editorial.

BPO in the Anuradhapura backwoods
IT rumble in the jungle

What puzzles us is why some of these articles (Not the Sunday Times story) referred to the venture as a ‘corporate responsibility’ (an euphemism for ‘charity’) of John Keels Holdings (JKH), a top business conglomerate in Sri Lanka.

When Indian Tobacco Company (ITC) launched e-Choupal chain in India, nobody branded it ‘corporate responsibility’. It was an online window for its rural suppliers of first tobacco and later other agricultural/aquaculture produce like soya, coffee, and prawns, to interact directly with the company. It was part of ITC business and definitely not charity. That was why e-Choupal could survive and expand within a short period of time to over a thousand of centres, while most of the other tele-centre chains died down when the donor money was over.

The future of not just the MV project, but perhaps the whole ‘bottom of pyramid’ as well depends on the attitude the business takes. If this is just a promotional activity of a business firm, funded by its marketing budget, it might not lead anywhere. It is essential that corporate sector treats such ventures as a part of their core business rather than charity or mere image promoting activities.

Sunday Times Financial Times (Sri Lanka) February 11 2007

Acutally, on how to improve agricultural markets using ICTs…

According to the 17 July timeline.ppt, the PTWC and the Japanese Center issued the first bulletin within 17 minutes of the earthquake. The Minister indicates that the entire country was fully prepared within 6 minutes of receiving that bulletin. This may possibly be a world record.

If we assume the 23 minutes was counted from the time the warning was received, the country was ready 40 minutes after the earthquake. Even that is extraordinary. The Sri Lankan official who was interviewed by the Associated Press does not seem to have been aware of this great achievement and simply talked about plans and sirens in religious establishments. It appears that the international press is badly informed or is maliciously supressing Sri Lanka’s achievements.

The Minister further stated ” all we need is 20 minutes to warn the people if they are in imminent danger since there are 15-20 disaster management officials in all coastal districts who are ready to evacuate the people.” The Times states that the disaster management personnel are mainly army, navy and air force officers who have undergone “vigorous training to evacuate people living on the coast to higher grounds which have now been identified.”
“The people in these areas too are trained to follow route maps to reach safety in case of a tsunami. Police in these areas have been given megaphones to help in the process.”

The Ministry has already received funds from UNESCAP to build three tsunami warning towers in the Eastern, Northern and Southern Provinces and hopes to build another 25 towers by December 26 [2006] to mark the second anniversary of the disaster, according to the Times.

To summarize:

• Sri Lanka only needs twenty minutes to act on a tsunami warning. It took precisely 23 minutes on 17 July 2006, but action is being taken to shave off 3 minutes from the response time.
• There are 15-20 disaster management officials in each coastal district, mainly from the forces, giving a total of 15 x 10 = 150 in all. [One assumes different arrangements are in place for Jaffna, Mulativu, Mannar, Kilinochchi, Trinco, Batticaloa, Ampara districts which are not fully under government control]
• They have identified the vulnerable populations and trained them.
• They have also identified the evacuation paths and the safe locations to move the people to.
• The Police, not the disaster management personnel, have been issued megaphones to assist in evacuations, suggesting close coordination between the Police and the disaster personnel.
• Funds have been received for three warning towers, one each for the Northern, Eastern and Southern provinces.
• Funds have not been received, but will be sought for 25 additional towers. Fund raising, procurment under government procedures and construction will be all completed within five months, giving a total of 28 operational warning towers along the coastline by 26 December 2006.

If all this is true, there is no question that Sri Lanka is the country that is best prepared for a tsunami. On this strength alone, the Disaster Minister should be nominated to a UN post, shortly after the inauguration of the 28 warning towers on 26 December 2006. We have no doubt he will be accepted with acclaim.