BSNL to set up data centers in five locations across India, including Guwahati : CM Sarma
CM Dr. Sarma attends inauguration of the indigenous 4G network
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the indigenous 4G network today at a central event at Jharsuguda, Odisha. Chief Minister Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma joined the event which marked a historic milestone in Bharat’s digital journey, virtually from Srimanta Sankaradeva Kalakshetra in Guwahati, along with Union Minister for Communications Jyotiraditya Scindia.
It may be noted that synchronizing with BSNL’s silver jubilee year, the initiative of inaugurating the 4G network will ensure that all mobile towers, optical fiber, and related components of India’s mobile network will now be manufactured in India by Indians. At the beginning of the programme, Chief Minister Dr. Sarma, together with Union Minister Scindia and Tata Sons Chairman N. Chandrasekaran, paid tributes to Zubeen Garg.
Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Minister reiterated Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call to build a self-reliant India through the use of indigenous products in everyday life. He said that some years ago, the Prime Minister entrusted the Department of Telecommunications, BSNL, and the Tata Group with the responsibility of indigenizing mobile towers, optical fiber, and related equipment. He emphasized that indigenous means making entirely in India, without importing any component from outside. He called the launch of the 4G network under the Prime Minister’s leadership a matter of pride. He also said that as an offshoot of the efforts of Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, 92,633 new 4G towers have been installed across the country.
The Chief Minister said that only four countries in the world have developed such an indigenous 4G mobile network. With the launch of this indigenous 4G network by Prime Minister Narendra Modi today, India has become the fifth country to hold its own network, technology, and materials.
Thanking Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia for his presence in Assam on this historic occasion, the Chief Minister informed that BSNL would soon upgrade the indigenous 4G network to 5G, and by 2030 to 6G. He moreover, said that that BSNL would set up data centers in five locations across India, one of which will be established in Guwahati. The Chief Minister further said that construction has already begun on several data centers at the IT Park near Borjhar Airport. These centers will create local employment opportunities, allowing educated youth of Assam to work within the state instead of moving to cities like Bengaluru.
The Chief Minister noted that during Advantage Assam 2.0, Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia had promised a 5G lab at Gauhati University, which has now become a reality. He said that just as Prime Minister Modi indigenized BSNL’s entire mobile network, he has also launched a large-scale mission to manufacture chips used in computers, mobiles, and vehicles within India. With the Tata Group wokring on the semiconductor unit at Jagiroad, Assam is rapidly emerging as a major hub of India’s semiconductor sector. He emphasized that whether in data centers or semiconductors, Prime Minister Modi and Union Minister Scindia have positioned Assam as a nerve centre of technology. Highlighting Assam’s integration with the Swadeshi network, Dr. Sarma said that the development will help the state in leading the country in technological self-reliance. On the occasion of BSNL’s 25th anniversary, the Chief Minister, along with the Union Minister, released the commemorative booklet titled Sanchar Charika.
Union Minister for Communications and DoNER Jyotiraditya Scindia, Assam’s Minister for Information and Technology Keshab Mahanta, MPs Dilip Saikia and Bijuli Kalita Medhi, Tata Sons Chairman N. Chandrasekaran, BSNL CMD A. Robert Jerard Ravi, BSNL Enterprise Business Director Sudhakararao Papa, senior officials, and other dignitaries attended the event.
