All inhabited villages in the Northeast would be connected to a 4G network by December 2023, according to Rijiju

Union minister Kiren Rijiju said on Tuesday that all inhabited villages in the northeastern region and border territories must be connected to a 4G network by December 2023. After assessing the 4G saturation project for bringing 4G mobile service to all inhabited villages in the Northeast at a meeting here, Rijiju stated that with the telecom revolution underway, no rural place should remain unconnected, which is Prime Minister Narendra Modi's mantra.

"All inhabited villages in the Northeast and border areas must be connected to the 4G network by December 2023," he told PTI. The goal of the meeting, according to the Union Minister of Law and Justice, was to guarantee coordination among various stakeholders, bring everyone on board, and plug any gaps that arose. "Reviewed the 4G Saturation project in order to provide 4G Mobile Service to all populated settlements in the North-East. Attendees included the Secretary of Telecom and representatives from the Armed Forces. Proper coordination is established in order to complete the project on time, as required by the PM "He tweeted about it.

Rijiju specifically addressed concerns concerning his home state of Arunachal Pradesh. In February 2022, the government notified Parliament that 25,067 of the country's 5,97,618 populated communities lacked cell connectivity and Internet access. The Parliament was informed that, of the 25,067 uncovered communities, approximately 11,000 have been incorporated in Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) programmes.

The remaining communities in the country are gradually being covered by the government and telecom service providers (TSPs). The USOF scheme was started in 2002 with the goal of providing mobile connectivity in unconnected villages and making non-discriminatory access to ICT services affordable to those living in distant places. Approximately 43% of the USOF villages, or 11,000 villages, still lack Internet access. Furthermore, according to official data, just 51% of all government WiFi hotspots placed in the country offer service.

(source : PTI)