RAS question
The PM-WANI scheme is related to:
Correct answer: (B) Public Wi-Fi access through PDOs without licence.
The PM-WANI scheme is related to providing public Wi-Fi access through Public Data Offices, without requiring a licence fee for broadband internet services over public Wi-Fi hotspots.
Explanation
PM-WANI, or PM Wi-Fi Access Network Interface, was approved in December 2020 as a framework to expand public Wi-Fi hotspots through Public Data Offices. The PIB release states that the Cabinet approved setting up public Wi-Fi networks through Public Data Office Aggregators so that public Wi-Fi service could be provided through Public Data Offices without any licence fee. This is why the scheme is not a general infrastructure, farming, or water-supply programme. Its policy logic is digital connectivity: wider public Wi-Fi is meant to proliferate broadband services, including for users who need stable, high-speed internet access. The licence-fee-free model is central because it lowers the entry barrier for public Wi-Fi deployment.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Road construction is outside the scheme's scope because PM-WANI concerns public Wi-Fi networks and broadband internet access, not transport infrastructure.
- (C) Agriculture is not the focus here; the cited PIB release frames PM-WANI around public Wi-Fi hotspots and broadband service proliferation.
- (D) Water supply is unrelated because the scheme is about digital connectivity through Public Data Offices, not physical water infrastructure.
Concept
This tests government schemes under the Indian Economy syllabus, especially digital infrastructure and ease of access to services. RAS repeatedly asks such schemes because the exam expects candidates to link a scheme's acronym with its actual delivery mechanism and policy objective.