Mobile Mania

DA Bureau  

Mobiles initially started off as a lifestyle statement with over-priced calls. Then the whole mobile landscape changed with the introduction of Calling Party Pays regime. With the entry of giant companies in telecommunication sector, such as Reliance and Tata, the mobile market has notched up significant gains not only for manufacturers and distributors, but also for the mobile users. All these developments have led to the emergence of the mobile mania among people. 

Mobile phones, that were out of the poor, lower class people not very long ago, because of high cost of handsets and high call charges on both incoming and outgoing calls, have now become a necessary tool for an average Indian’s life, irrespective of class or status. 

From school goers to college students; working women to house wives; office personnel to auto-rickshaw driver; mobile phones have become a necessary part of life of all categories of people. They are very much in vogue; a necessary fashion statement. People use mobile phones even though they may not have the need for it. Nowadays, one can even see a vegetable-seller quoting the prizes of vegetables on mobile phone; a rickshaw puller chatting on phone and a school student hanging around with friends on a mobile phone. 

All credit for this goes to the availability of new and cheaper mobile schemes, with pre-paid and post-paid cards. Some mobile phone manufacturers even have life-time incoming plans. The leading mobile network service providers in India are Idea, Airtel, Hutch, BSNL, MTNL, TATA and Reliance, etc. there is a cut-throat competition among all these companies, trying to give more and more facilities to their customers. This has provided great impetus to the accelerating growth of mobile users all over India. 

The astonishing growth on the mobile front can be calculated from the fact that in 2004 alone 674 million phones were purchased. The corresponding figures for 2005 stood and approximately 730 million. Over 72 million mobile phone subscribers were registered by the end of the first quarter of 2006. The growing mobile user base is a reflection of the pathetic landline connectivity on one the side and capability of mobile phone as more than just communication device on other side.  

Mohhamad Ibrahim, Manager of Narang Electronics supports this fact. He says, “The availability of multi-purpose mobile phones like digital camera phones, and phones having various games, has resulted in the steady increase in the subscriber-ship of mobile phones in recent years. These phones are very popular among younger generation. However, other age-group people from different classes are also in the grip of mobile boom”. 

In October 2004, mobile connections outnumbered landline connections in the country. While landlines were subscribed by only 3.32 million during 2004-05, cell-phones added 18.59 million subscribers. India is still way behind China with the largest subscriber base of more than 600 million. However, the current growth rates will almost certainly spell a new order in the future of mobile phones in India. 

The mobile phones have become an indispensable part of human life because apart from connecting people, they provide many other facilities; they serve as cameras, as watches and alarm clocks and even internet. They also provide games which are very popular among young kids. Mobiles also function as calculators.  

If one happens to be at an unknown place, the mobile would tell the location. The address book and contacts list on phones is facilitate our social interface. The calendar function on the mobile phones can help us track our lives. Mobile phones can also function as radios. For some, the mobile phone also becomes a notepad. This is just for starters.   

The more advanced mobile phones have an immense array of features squeezed into small packages such as digital camera, video recorder, audio recorder, multimedia messaging, e-mail browsing, web browsing, document viewer and music player. Going by this pace, mobile phones of tomorrow will be remote controls for our life and the device that was once a replacement for the fixed-line phone will occupy an even greater role in our lives. Countries like Japan and South Korea already lead the way in having multi-purpose mobile phones. China is following and India is not far behind. 

As wireless technologies require much lower cost to roll out over large areas than fixed-line systems, mobiles are potentially playing a vital role in economic development of our country. Mobile communications contribute significantly towards enhancing income and improving quality of life, especially in rural areas by improving access to education, health and financial services. They also enable the development of non-agricultural economic activity. 

Undoubtedly, mobile phone offers enormous advantages such as extra convenience, greater personal security, and instant connectivity anywhere, anytime. But this is only one side of the story; the other side is not all that rosy. Mobile communication system is said to be hazardous for health.  

The impact of mobile phone usage on human health is perhaps the most concerning one. Mobile phones radiate electromagnetic waves, which cause harm to human body, mainly to the brain. Some time back it was reported that keeping the mobile phone in the trouser pocket may adversely affect a man’s sexual power.  

Besides, it has been lately discovered that mobile phones are making it easier for criminals; they commit organized crime as the mobile phones enable them to remain in touch all the time. The Short Message Service (SMS) may be a great hit among teenagers and computer geeks, but it has become an anathema for the police because a large number of criminals are using this service, considered as safe medium of communication.  

However, these problems can be sorted out by training people on a mobile etiquette in a manner that they will cultivate a greater level of awareness. They should ensure that their mobile phones are not negatively impacting the lives of those around them. With little but determined effort by everyone –the users, the technology developers, the operators, the content providers, the government authorities -- mobile communication will surely make our lives more convenient and secure, offering more freedom and ultimately creating a rich and cohesive society.