Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi addressed a programme marking the silver jubilee celebrations of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) today via video conferencing. He also released a postal stamp to commemorate the occasion. Union Ministers Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw, Shri Devusinh Chauhan and Shri L. Murugan and the leaders of telecom and broadcasting sectors were among those present on the occasion.
Addressing the gathering, the Prime Minister said the self-made 5G Test Bed that he dedicated to the nation today, is an important step toward self-reliance in critical and modern technology in the telecom sector. He congratulated all those associated with this project including the IITs. “The country's own 5G standard has been made in the form of 5Gi, it is a matter of great pride for the country. It will play a big role in bringing 5G technology to the villages of the country”, he said.
The Prime Minister said that connectivity will determine the pace of progress in 21st century India. Therefore connectivity has to be modernized at every level. 5G technology, he continued, is also going to bring positive changes in the governance of the country, ease of living and ease of doing business. This will boost growth in every sector like agriculture, health, education, infrastructure and logistics. This will also increase convenience and create many employment opportunities. For rapid roll-out of 5G, efforts of both the government and industry are needed, he added.
The Prime Minister cited the telecom sector as a great example of how self-reliance and healthy competition create a multiplier effect in society and the economy. Coming out of the despair, frustration, corruption and policy paralysis of the 2G era, the country has moved rapidly from 3G to 4G and now 5G and 6G.
The Prime Minister noted that in the last 8 years, new energy was infused into the telecom sector with the ‘Panchamrita’ of Reach, Reform, Regulate, Respond and Revolutionise. He credited TRAI for playing a very important role in this. The Prime Minister said now the country is going beyond thinking in silos and moving ahead with the ‘whole of the government approach’. Today we are expanding the fastest in the world in terms of teledensity and internet users in the country, many sectors including telecom have played a role in it, he said.
The Prime Minister said to make the mobile accessible to the poorest of the poor families, emphasis was placed on the manufacturing of mobile phones in the country itself. The result was that the mobile manufacturing units increased from 2 to more than 200.
The Prime Minister noted that today India is connecting every village in the country with optical fibre. He added that before 2014, not even 100 village panchayats in India were provided with optical fibre connectivity. Today we have made broadband connectivity reach about 1.75 lakh gram panchayats. Hundreds of government services are reaching the villages because of this.
The Prime Minister said that the ‘whole of government approach’ is important for the regulators like TRAI also for meeting the present and future challenges. “Today regulation is not limited to the boundaries of just one sector. Technology is inter-connecting different sectors. That's why today everyone is experiencing the need for collaborative regulation. For this it is necessary that all the regulators come together, develop common platforms and find solutions for better coordination”, the Prime Minister said.
मुझे देश को अपना, खुद से निर्मित 5G Testbed राष्ट्र को समर्पित करने का अवसर मिला है।
— PMO India (@PMOIndia) May 17, 2022
ये टेलिकॉम सेक्टर में क्रिटिकल और आधुनिक टेक्नॉलॉजी की आत्मनिर्भरता की दिशा में भी एक अहम कदम है।
मैं इस प्रोजेक्ट से जुड़े सभी साथियों को, हमारे IITs को बहुत-बहुत बधाई देता हूं: PM
5Gi के रूप में जो देश का अपना 5G standard बनाया गया है, वो देश के लिए बहुत गर्व की बात है।
— PMO India (@PMOIndia) May 17, 2022
ये देश के गांवों में 5G टेक्नॉलॉजी पहुंचाने में बड़ी भूमिका निभाएगा: PM @narendramodi
21वीं सदी के भारत में कनेक्टिविटी, देश की प्रगति की गति को निर्धारित करेगी।
— PMO India (@PMOIndia) May 17, 2022
इसलिए हर स्तर पर कनेक्टिविटी को आधुनिक बनाना ही होगा: PM @narendramodi
5G टेक्नोलॉजी भी देश की गवर्नेंस में, ease of living, ease of doing business में सकारात्मक बदलाव लाने वाली है।
— PMO India (@PMOIndia) May 17, 2022
इससे खेती, स्वास्थ्य, शिक्षा, इंफ्रास्ट्रक्चर और logistics, हर सेक्टर में ग्रोथ को बल मिलेगा।
इससे सुविधा भी बढ़ेगी और रोज़गार के भी अनेक अवसर बनेंगे: PM @narendramodi
आत्मनिर्भरता और स्वस्थ स्पर्धा कैसे समाज में, अर्थव्यवस्था में multiplier effect पैदा करती है, इसका एक बेहतरीन उदाहरण हमारा टेलिकॉम सेक्टर है।
— PMO India (@PMOIndia) May 17, 2022
2G काल की निराशा, हताशा, करप्शन, पॉलिसी पैरालिसिस से बाहर निकलकर देश ने 3G से 4G और अब 5G और 6G की तरफ तेज़ी से कदम बढ़ाए हैं: PM
Silos वाली सोच से आगे निकलकर अब देश whole of the government approach के साथ आगे बढ़ रहा है।
— PMO India (@PMOIndia) May 17, 2022
आज हम देश में tele-density और internet users के मामले में दुनिया में सबसे तेज़ी से expand हो रहे हैं तो उसमें टेलीकॉम समेत कई सेक्टर्स की भूमिका रही है: PM @narendramodi
मोबाइल गरीब से गरीब परिवार की भी पहुंच में हो, इसके लिए हमने देश में ही मोबाइल फोन की मैन्युफेक्चरिंग पर बल दिया।
— PMO India (@PMOIndia) May 17, 2022
परिणाम ये हुआ कि मोबाइल मैन्युफेक्चरिंग यूनिट्स 2 से बढ़कर 200 से अधिक हो गईं: PM @narendramodi
आज भारत देश के हर गांव तक ऑप्टिकल फाइबर से जोड़ने में जुटा है।
— PMO India (@PMOIndia) May 17, 2022
आपको भी पता है कि 2014 से पहले भारत में 100 ग्राम पंचायतें भी ऑप्टिकल फाइबर कनेक्टिविटी से नहीं जुड़ी थीं।
आज हम करीब-करीब पौने दो लाख ग्राम पंचायतों तक ब्रॉडबैंड कनेक्टिविटी पहुंचा चुके हैं: PM @narendramodi