According to Jyotiraditya M Scindia, Union Minister of Communications and Development of the North Eastern Region, the Central government is gearing up to launch a $4 billion initiative aimed at delivering high-speed broadband connectivity to every village in the country. The move is part of a broader strategy to ensure 100 per cent telecom coverage, particularly in remote and underserved regions.
Scindia emphasised that connecting rural areas through robust telecom infrastructure will not only empower citizens but also enhance their access to information and digital communication tools.
Highlighting India’s swift rollout of 5G services, the minister said that domestic telecom operators have collectively invested $50 billion over the past 21 months to install next-generation wireless networks.
He also pointed out that data usage in India has seen a dramatic rise, with average consumption currently at 27.5 GB per user each month. This represents a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 19.5% over the past five years.
On the manufacturing front, Scindia highlighted that India has significantly ramped up local smartphone production, helping to reduce reliance on imports. Citing media reports, he noted that Apple is planning to produce and source all its iPhones from India in the near future, reinforcing the country’s growing stature as a mobile manufacturing hub. Furthermore, he mentioned that Apple has decided to shift its entire mobile phone production to India in the coming years.
He emphasised that investing in India is a commercially sound decision for every original equipment manufacturer (OEM), driven by the country’s economic advantages, rather than being just goodwill.
Scindia concluded by inviting international telecom and technology firms to invest in India, highlighting the advantages of large-scale opportunities and cost-efficiency in the domestic market.
