India is a Country with Fastest 5G Rollout in the World: PM Modi

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said that India is moving towards being the biggest exporter of telecom technology in the world from being only a user a few years ago. He underlined that India is the country with the fastest 5G rollout in the world.

Mr Modi stated this while inaugurating the new International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Area Office and Innovation Centre in India during an event in New Delhi.

The Prime Minister said,  5G services have been rolled out in more than 125 cities in just 120 days and the services have reached around 350 districts in the country. Mr Modi also said that the government is discussing 6G just after six months after the rollout of  5G which shows India’s confidence. He announced that the country will set up 100 new 5G labs in the coming days which will help in developing 5G applications as per the unique needs of India.

He highlighted that India’s telecom and digital model are smooth, secure, transparent and trusted, and said this decade is India’s tech-ade. The Prime Minister asserted that India is now the most connected democracy in the world with more than a hundred crore mobile connections and credited this transformation to the availability of cheap smartphones and data.

He said, over 800 crore digital payments are made every month in India through UPI and over seven crore e-authentications take place in India every day. He informed that India has successfully managed to open more bank accounts than the entire population of the USA through the Jan Dhan Yojna.

Underling that telecom technology for India is not a mode of power, but a mission to empower,  the Prime Minister remarked that digital technology is universal in the country and accessible to everyone. He mentioned that broadband connectivity had 60 million users in India before 2014 but that number has increased to over 800 million today. He further added that the number of internet connections in India is more than 85 crores compared to 25 crores before 2014.

Referring to the rural upsurge of internet use in India, the Prime Minister informed that the number of internet users in the villages has surpassed the urban areas indicating that digital power has reached every nook and corner of the country. Mr Modi also said that the country will also work closely with ITU for the standardization of future technologies and underlined that the new Indian ITU Area office will also help in creating the right environment for 6G.

The Prime Minister expressed delight in announcing that the World Telecommunications Standardization Assembly of ITU will be held in October next year in Delhi. He added that as India is fulfilling its responsibilities as G20 Presidency, reducing regional divide is one of its key priorities. On the occasion, Prime Minister Modi unveiled Bharat’s 6G Vision Document and launched the 6G Research and Development Test Bed. He also launched Call before u Dig App which will reduce the instances of unnecessary digging and damage.

Union Minister for Communications, Ashwini Vaishnaw, External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar, Minister of State for Communications,  Devusinh Chauhan and Secretary General ITU Doreen-Bogdan Martin were also present during the event.

Speaking at inauguration of ITU Area Office & Innovation Centre in Delhi. Initiatives like 6G Test Bed & 'Call Before You Dig' app are also being launched. https://t.co/z6hRdeTPbB

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 22, 2023