PM Modi to launch development projects worth over Rs 60,000 crore in Odisha today

At a press conference on Friday, communications minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said that the PM will be making the announcement from Jharsuguda in Odisha. He added that the initiative reinforces India’s telecom self-reliance at a time when only four other countries have their own 4G technology stack, namely Sweden, South Korea, China and Finland.

“India is now the fifth country and the sixth company [C-DOT] to produce telecom equipment in the history of the world,” said Scindia. The network uses Radio Access Network (RAN) developed by Tejas Network, a core network from C-DOT (Centre For Development Of Telematics), and is integrated by Tata Consultancy Services, with being fully upgradable to 5G.

Alongside the 4G stack, the government will also launch the Digital Bharat Nidhi-backed 4G saturation project. Over 4,723 towers have been funded by private operators Reliance Jio, and Bharti Airtel, and another 14,180 towers from BSNL’s indigenous 4G stack, which together cover 26,700 remote and border villages, reaching an estimated two million new users. Scindia added that “no part of India will be left untouched.”