Page 37 - NIS English 16-30,April 2023

ITU Regional Office International

INAUGURATION OF ITU REGIONAL OFFICE AND INNOVATION CENTRE

THIS DECADE IS INDIA'S TECHADE ERA

Now the number of internet users in the villages of India is more than the number of internet
users living in the cities. This is proof of how digital power is reaching every part of the
country. In this series of increasing digital power, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated
the Regional Office and Innovation Center of the International Telecommunication Union
(ITU) in India on 22 March. The India-funded office will provide its services to 7 other
neighbouring countries including India and will increase coordination.

ndia is fulfilling its responsibilities as the
Chair of the G20. Bridging the regional INAUGURATION OF ITU REGIONAL OFFICE
Idivide is one of its key priorities. Only a few n
weeks back India organized the Global South International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
area office and innovation center inaugurated.
Summit. India underlined the importance Also unveiled the India 6G Vision Document and
of technology, design, and standards being inaugurated the 6G R&D Test Bed. The 'Call Before You
tailored to the needs of the Global South as it Dig' app was also launched.
increasingly seeks to bridge the technological n ITU is the United Nations specialized agency for
divide. "The ITU Area Office and Innovation information and communication technologies (ICT).
Center is a major step in this direction, it It will work for India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri
will also accelerate India's efforts to provide Lanka, Maldives, Afghanistan, and Iran.
universal connectivity to the Global South,"
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said at the DIGITAL ECONOMY GROWING TWO AND A
opening ceremony. HALF TIMES FASTER
The successfully developed telecommuni-
cation technology in India is attracting the n Over 800 crore digital payments per month through UPI.
attention of many countries of the world. n India has more than 7 crore e-authentication every day.
Prime Minister Modi said, “Today's India is 5 lakh common service centers are providing digital
fast moving towards the next phase of the services.
digital revolution. India is the country with the n India is now the world's most connected democracy
fastest 5G rollout in the world as 5G services n with over 100 crore mobile connections.
have been launched in more than 125 cities in Before 2014 there were 60 crore users of broadband
connectivity in India which have now increased to more
just 120 days and 5G services have reached than 80 crore.
around 350 districts in the country. This n The number of internet connections in India is more than
decade is India's Techade." India's telecom 85 crore which was 25 crore before 2014.
and digital model is smooth, secure, and n In the last 9 years, the government and the private
transparent. All the friendly countries of South sector have laid 25 lakh km of optical fiber. 2 lakh gram
Asia can take advantage of this. panchayats have been connected with optical fiber.

New India Samachar April 16-30, 2023 35