Thursday, December 31, 2009

Integrated Radio System, Tetra to Tackle Emergencies during 2010 Games

It’s being touted as the first Commonwealth Games project to get off the ground. Come April, the government will launch an integrated radio system, Tetra that will tackle emergencies.

Eighteen agencies, including fire services, civic organizations and disaster management bodies, will be synchronized under the system. The Rs 99-Crore deals was signed with HCL Motorola on Tuesday.

Savitur Prasad, secretary (I-T), said, ‘‘Tetra is a common platform that will integrate the various services of the agencies so that the response time is significantly faster than is the case at present.’’

Under Tetra, services of agencies such as Delhi police, DTC, MCD, NDMC, offices of the SDMs, DJB, PWD, DDA, SAI as well as the organizing committee will be available on a common radio wavelength of 400 MHz. ‘‘This will be a secure line which will send encrypted data so that communication between the agencies is not hacked into,’’ Prasad said.

According to Delhi government officials, the system will be especially helpful during the Games when an integrated and fast response to situations will be the key to ensuring a successful event.

The tender, awarded to HCL Motorola for seven years, will be operational from April 2010. “In an emergency, local communication lines become jammed due to heavy traffic. This dedicated signal will help not only coordinate the services of various agencies better but also ensure that communication is kept established at all times,’’ Prasad said.

According to the agreement, 46 physical base stations will be set up across the city. About 10,000 Tetra sets will be in operation once the system is set rolling. Of these sets, around 3,200 have been marked for the organizing committee’s use during the Games in October 2010.

The radios will be available in the form of handheld, vehicular mounted and fixed sets. With high signal strength, the system is expected to work in adverse conditions as well, sources said.

Incidentally, it’s the first time that such a system is being launched by a state government. The licensee for the Tetra system will be the Delhi government with various agencies using the platform for faster communication.

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