New Delhi (NVI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said India needs to work together to ensure timely rollout of 5G technology to leapfrog into the future and empower millions of Indians.
Speaking at the fourth edition of India Mobile Congress (IMC), the Prime Minister said the government will ensure greater spread of fixed line, broad band connectivity and public Wifi hotspots to improve digital connectivity in the country.
“We are embarking on a plan to ensure that over the next three years, every village will have high speed fiber optic connectivity. There is fiber optic cable at Andaman and Nicobar Island. We are coming out with programmes that focus exclusively on places which can make the best of such connectivity—aspirational districts, Laskwadeep, other islands,” Modi said.
He further added, “It is because of mobile technology that we are able to provide benefits worth billions of dollars to millions of Indians. It is because of mobile technology that we were able to help the poor and vulnerable quickly/ during the pandemic It is because of mobile technology that we are seeing billions of cashless transactions which boost formalisation and transparency.”
“Due to technological upgradation, we have a culture of replacing handsets & gadgets frequently, Modi said, adding, “Can the industry form a task-force to think of a better way of handling the electronic waste & create a circular economy.”
IMC 2020 has participation from various government departments, heads of telecom companies, domain experts in 5G, artificial intelligence, internet of things, data analytics, cloud and edge computing, blockchain, cyber-security, smart cities and automation.
According to a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office, the event’s theme–Inclusive Innovation – Smart, Secure, Sustainable–aims to align to the Prime Minister’s vision to promote ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’, ‘Digital Inclusivity’, and ‘Sustainable development, entrepreneurship and innovation’.
-CHK