India will have 5.4 million rural Internet users by this year: IAMAI

In 2009, there were about 4.2 million active Internet users in rural India. Internet was mainly used for accessing e-mail services

According to a study called 'Internet for Rural India' conducted jointly by Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) and IMRB, it is estimated that the rural online population (active) will grow and reach 5.4 million in 2010. Active Internet users are defined as users who surf Internet at least once a month.

In 2009, there were about 4.2 million (estimated) active Internet users in rural India. Of that, 1 million active online users were from Tamil Nadu, 6 lakh from Andhra Pradesh and 3 lakh were from Maharashtra. In 2008, it was estimated that there were 3.3 million active Internet users in rural India.

More than 70 per cent of the active Internet users had accessed the Internet from either cyber cafes or common service centers. 10 per cent accessed the Internet from home and 12 per cent from school and computer institutes. Only 1 per cent accessed the Internet from tehsil offices.

Internet was primarily utilised for checking and sending e-mails (85 per cent users), watching and listening to music and videos (67 per cent), educational and information search (48 per cent), text chat (40 per cent), online news and railway booking (16 per cent each), online banking and financial information (15 per each), Internet telephony (14 per cent), latest farming techniques (13 per cent) and information on fertilisers and pesticides (8 per cent).