Every Village Will Have High-Speed Fibre Optic Connectivity in Next 3 Years: PM Narendra Modi at India Mobile Congress 2020

Hon'ble Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi, today delivered the inaugural address at the fourth edition of the India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2020. The three-day mega-event, themed “Inclusive Innovation: Smart, secure, sustainable”, scheduled for 8th-10th December 2020, is being held virtually in view of the COVID 19 situation.

The prestigious event, jointly organized by the Department of Telecommunication (DoT) and COAI, will see 30+ participating countries, 210 speakers, 50+ thought leadership sessions, 150+ exhibitors, 3000+ CXO level delegates coming together this year. Ericsson, Dell Technologies, Ribbon and Red Hat are the top sponsors of IMC 2020. 

Considered as the largest digital technology event and also the biggest international tech conference in South Asia, IMC 2020 will carry forward its legacy of being the perfect congregation to display, discuss, unveil, imbibe, educate and recognize the importance of global and Indian telecommunications, growth of exponential technologies, mobile, internet connectivity and digital services sector. The fourth edition of the event will comprise of India’s biggest technology exhibition, opportunities for networking, collaborations, industry tie-ups, corporate handshakes and business lead generation.

With the theme ‘Inclusive Innovation: Smart, secure, sustainable’, IMC 2020 will highlight the journey from smart devices to a smarter world, safe and secure technology and breakthroughs in the domain, easy and inclusive tech adoption, and environmentally sustainable futuristic tech. The technology of the future promises to be efficient and sustainable. The theme is further sub-divided into 5 categories: 5G, IoT, Robotics, AI and VR.

Apart from Hon'ble Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, the inaugural session was attended by, Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad, Hon’ble Minister for Communications, Electronics & Information Technology and Law & Justice, Shri Sanjay Dhotre, Hon’ble Minister of State for Communications, Education and Electronics & Information Technology, Shri Anshu Prakash, IAS, Chairman DCC & Secretary (T), Department of Telecommunications, Shri Mukesh Ambani, Chairman, Reliance Industries Limited and Shri Sunil Bharti Mittal, Chairman, Bharti Enterprises.

In the inaugural address, Hon'ble Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, said, “I am thankful to the Indian telecom sector. lt is because of their relentless innovation and effort that the country functioned smoothly during the pandemic, and still continues to do so. Be it in making healthcare more affordable and accessible to people, providing online education to the students or even in making essential services available to all in a hassle-free manner. Now, we need to work together to ensure timely roll-out of 5G network connectivity in order to leapfrog into the future and empower millions of Indians. We are also in fact embarking on a plan to ensure that over the next 3 years, every village have high-speed fibre optic connectivity. India is emerging as one of the most preferred destination for mobile manufacturing. It is of paramount importance, considering the fact that, it is with the help of mobile technology that we will embark on one of the world's largest COVID-19 vaccination drive.”

Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad, Hon’ble Minister for Communications, Electronics & Information Technology and Law & Justice, said, “Technology must be smart, secure and sustainable so that common people come to have a stake in the process. India has the potential to become the hub of global supply chain. Ease of doing business is attracting global companies to set up shop in India and the incentive linked investment scheme is helping in this. I want to urge innovators and manufacturers to Make in India and export outside and earn incentives in the process. Also, digital inclusion and empowerment is the priority now and tech like AI should also work towards ensuring this. Be it JAM, UPI, GSTN - all is now managed digitally. This Inclusive character of digital is something that the world can replicate from us. I have no doubt about the fact that we will become 1 trillion dollar digital economy in the next 5 years.”

Shri Anshu Prakash, IAS, Chairman DCC & Secretary (T), Department of Telecommunications, “We the blessed that IMC 2020 is being inaugurated by our hon'ble Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi. With his relentless support and encouragement we have scaled new heights in our journey towards a truly digital India. In the midst of the pandemic, our telecom sector fared well and all services were provided in an uninterrupted manner. The massive data surge which was much above the global average, were accommodated well by our telecom sector. Robotics, AI, VR, AR- every new technology will run on telecom. It is important for us now to bridge the digital divide, innovate to bring in more intelligent products that are secure and environmentally sustainable”

Lt. Gen. Dr. S P Kochar, DG COAI said, “First and foremost, in the midst of the pandemic that has gripped the world in unparalleled ways, we are grateful to the Government of India for the humongous effort put in by them to foster a facilitative environment for the entire tech and telecom industry. The telecom sector in India has reached glorious heights, despite constraints. This has been possible due to the visionary thought leadership and unstinted flawless execution capabilities provided by industry captains.”

IMC 2020 will be celebrating 25 years of mobility, providing a unique platform for buyers and sellers to meet, 5G hackathon, networking for delegates and constitute a platform for startups to showcase their innovations. There will be virtual product demonstrations, industry meetings, conference sessions, roundtables and business interactions.