PM Modi has said that it is with the help of mobile technology that ‘‘we will embark on one of the world's largest covid-19 vaccination drives.’’
He, however, did not provide details, even as he asserted that it was because of mobile technology that the government was able to help the poor and vulnerable with great speed during the pandemic.
Addressing the India Mobile Congress (IMC), PM Modi devoted the rest of his address to underscore the need for all stakeholders in the telecom sector to work together to ensure a timely roll-out of the fifth generation technology.
He urged the industry to work in tandem to make the country a global hub for telecom equipment, design development and manufacturing.
Stating that India is emerging as one of the most preferred destinations for mobile manufacturing, the Prime Minister said the government has come up with a production-linked incentive scheme.
The government, he said, is also embarking on a plan to ensure all villages have high-speed fibre-optic connectivity in three years. The programmes hereafter will focus exclusively on places which can extract the best out of such connectivity -- aspirational districts, districts hit by Maoist violence, north-eastern states, Lakshadweep Islands etc," he said.
"Even as we experience the rapid speed at which connectivity is improving, we also know that the acceleration has just begun," he said.
"The scale and speed of internet penetration can be seen from the following: Half of the total internet users in India were added in the last 4 years. Half of the total internet users are in our rural areas," he said.
Stating that India's digital size and digital appetite are unprecedented, Modi said the country has the world's lowest telecom tariffs and is one of the fastest-growing mobile app market globally. "The digital potential of our nation is unparalleled, perhaps even in the history of mankind."
"Today we are in an era where mobile apps which are a few years old are surpassing the value of companies which are present for decades. This is a good sign for India and our young innovators, too. Our youth are working on many products which have the potential to go global," he said.
