'There Should Not Be Any Levy on Digital Transactions'

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu was the prime mover behind Cyberabad, the information technology hub that hosts global giants such as Microsoft, as an extension to the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad.

- Joec Mathew

After the loss of Hyderabad to Telangana, the new state carved out of Andhra Pradesh, he is scripting another infrastructure development story around Amaravati, Andhra’s new capital city in the making. Naidu, in New Delhi to present the interim report of the committee of chief ministers on promotion of digital payment systems, which he heads, spoke to Joe C. Mathew about India’s digital future and plans for his state. Edited excerpts

Digital infrastructure is fairly good in cities. But there is a lot to be done in other areas. What are the bottlenecks? What needs to be done?

That is what we are saying in the report. We will discuss it with the prime minister also. The prime minister has announced Digital India but our infrastructure has not matured. It is very weak. We need last-mile fibre connectivity. A day will come when your call charges will be calculated on the basis of per capita consumption of fibre connectivity. This is what is happening (in Andhra Pradesh). I am going to give 15 mbps to every home within one year. It will be cost effective, as we are taking fibre through electric poles by spending only 60-70 per cent of what it would have cost us if we had used underground cables. By using the savings, I can give all channels and videos free, and also internet, to every household.

Interconnectivity issues, fight between wallets and banks, we are seeing all these things now. The regulations seem to be unable to deal with such problems. What are your recommendations in this regard?