Speaking at the inauguration of the India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2022, Birla said, “We have 240 million citizens connected to our networks, with 50% of them in rural India. Our networks have been constantly upgraded to be capable of smooth and swift migration to 5G.”
“Having taken concrete steps for the 5G ecosystem<\/a> development, 5G use cases for Indian enterprises and consumers, and acquisition of 5G spectrum in a very well designed auction, we will soon begin the 5G rollout journey,” he added.
Rivals Reliance Jio, and Bharti Airtel, also present on the dais at the inauguration confirmed their rollout plans, outlining the geographies they will launch their 5G services with. Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani reiterated Jio’s “commitment to deliver 5G to every town, every taluka, and every tehsil of our country by December 2023.”
Sunil Bharti Mittal, chairman, Bharti Enterprises also said that Bharti Airtel will launch 5G services starting with 8 cities – Delhi, Varanasi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Chennai, and Siliguri.
While Birla did not give a timeline, he stressed that Vi had a plan of action in place, and is working towards its goal of rolling out 5G. “We will leverage our strong presence in rural India, our enterprise customers, our technology partners, and global experience of the Vodafone Group for progressively rolling out our 5G networks<\/a> and services in the coming period,” he said.
He proceeded to talk about the use case to be demonstrated by Vi later in the day, which addresses the need for safe working conditions for workers at infrastructure construction sites by leveraging digital infrastructure and 5G. The use case demo aims to show how a high speed and low latency 5G network can be used to ensure worker safety and efficiency in the supervision of critical construction sites.
Birla also thanked the Prime Minister (also present on the dais) for acknowledging the role of the telecom industry<\/a> during the pandemic, adding that the ushering of the 5G era further demonstrates India’s prowess on the global stage, and “reinforces the telecom industry’s role as the bedrock digital India”.
He also expressed gratitude towards the government for “pathbreaking reforms” for the industry announced by the government. Last year, the government announced a relief package for the telecom industry and earlier this year, scrapped the floor rate for spectrum usage charges (SUC) for telcos. He said that the policy interventions have helped boost investor confidence in the sector.
“As we move into the 5G era, we hope to receive continued policy support to drive the 5G revolution<\/a> in this digital decade,” he said.
Outlining the significance of 5G service rollout in the country, Birla said that the telecom industry will ignite digital dreams.
“It will also set the stage for the country to become a USD 5 trillion economy in the next few years, with a USD 1 trillion contribution by the digital economy itself. 5G will augment services at scale and will create impact in critical areas,” he said.
These areas include Industry 4.0, automated manufacturing, connected factories, smart cities, smart automobiles, smart homes, immersive gaming, among others.
“5G will also accelerate education, remote health, and smart agriculture to enable inclusive growth and prosperity in rural India,” he added.
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