India eyes digital leadership as internet users surge from 25 Cr to 97 Cr: PM Modi
In a statement sent by the PMO to The Assam Tribune Modi revealed that India’s 5G rollout is among the fastest in the world, with 4.81 lakh base stations installed in just two years.;
Guwahati, July 2: India’s digital growth is among the fastest in the world and the aim is to make India the leader of the digital world, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
In a statement sent by the PMO to The Assam Tribune, Modi said that in 2014, India had around 25 crore internet connections. Today, that number has grown to over 97 crore. Over 42 lakh km of optical fibre cable (OFC), which is equivalent to 11 times the distance between earth and the moon, now connects even the most remote villages.
Modi revealed that India’s 5G rollout is among the fastest in the world, with 4.81 lakh base stations installed in just two years.
High-speed internet now reaches urban hubs and forward military posts alike, including Galwan, Siachen, and Ladakh.
India Stack, which is our digital backbone, has enabled platforms like UPI, which now handles 100+ billion transactions a year. Around half of all real time digital transactions happen in India.
“Ten years ago, we embarked on a bold journey into uncharted territory with great conviction. While decades were spent doubting the ability of Indians to use technology, we changed this approach and trusted the ability of Indians to use technology. While decades were spent thinking that use of technology will deepen the gap between the haves and the have-nots, we changed this mindset and used technology to eliminate the gap between the haves and the have-nots,” he added.
ONDC (Open Network for Digital Commerce) is a revolutionary platform which opens a new window of opportunities by providing a seamless connection with huge market of buyers and sellers. GeM (Government E-Marketplace) enables the common man to sell goods and services to all arms of the government. This not only empowers the common man with a huge market but also saves money for the government.
“Imagine this: You apply for a Mudra loan online. Your creditworthiness is assessed through an account aggregator framework. You get your loan and start your venture. You register on GeM, supply to schools and hospitals, and then scale up via ONDC.”
Modi further revealed that India’s Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) from Aadhaar, CoWIN, DigiLocker, and FASTag to PM-WANI and One Nation One Subscription is now studied and adopted globally. CoWIN enabled the world’s largest vaccination drive, issuing 220 crore QR-verifiable certificates. DigiLocker, with 54 crore users, hosts 775 crore documents, securely and seamlessly.
India now ranks among the top 3 startup ecosystems in the world, with over 1.8 lakh startups. But this is more than a startup movement, it is a tech renaissance. India is doing extremely well when it comes to AI skill penetration and AI talent concentration among our youth.
Through the $1.2 billion India AI Mission, India has enabled access to 34,000 GPUs at globally unmatched prices at less than US dollar1/GPU hour making India not just the most affordable internet economy, but also the most affordable compute destination.
“India has championed humanity-first AI. The New Delhi Declaration on AI promotes innovation with responsibility. We are establishing AI Centres of Excellence across the country,” PM Modi said.