How Does ‘Geography Matter’ when the ‘World is Flat’: Re-Understating Core-Periphery through the Technological Variability in West Bengal

The study has significantly identified that locations are critical to impact ICT access as well as the usage which further manifested as digital inequalities. It shows how the individual-level operational and attitudinal disparity along with access inequality complement the previous analyses and theories where it has already been observed that there are prominent rural-urban distinction in ICT adoption and also variations among different urban centres. It is found that not only the material access decline from a core urban location towards its peripheries, but the functional diversity and intensity and the attitude towards the ICTs also display a similar pattern. The pattern among the individuals from a rural or an urban residence also differs significantly. However, the gap is higher in case of a comparatively developed region than a less developed where the overall penetration itself is poor.