Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday announced during the Budget presentation that 5G mobile services will be rolled out during the financial year 2022-23
Image used for representational purposes only. AFP
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday announced during the Budget presentation that 5G mobile services will be rolled out during the financial year 2022-23.
The fifth generation of mobile network will deliver higher data speeds, more reliability, massive network capacity and increased availability.
Let’s take a look at how the technology can revolutionise telecommunication and all that the Finance Minister announced during the Budget:
What is 5G
– The fifth generation of broadband cellular networks is the successor to the 4G networks that connect most mobile phones at present.
– It promises to deliver higher performance and improved efficiency across networks.
– The 5G network is designed to connect virtually everyone and everything together including machines, objects, and devices.
– The 5G networks will have greater bandwidth thus offering higher download speeds that are expected to be at least 10 times faster than 4G LTE, according to wireless industry trade group GSMA.
– To put it into perspective, it would be fast enough to download a two hour movie in under 10 seconds, which would have taken about seven minutes with 4G.
– According to CNN, having greater bandwidth will also mean it can handle more connected devices than previously possible, further leading to no more spotty service in crowded areas.
What did Nirmala Sitharaman announce
The finance minister said that the government will conduct a spectrum auction this year, which will facilitate the rollout of 5G services by private telecom operators during the financial year 2022-23.
She said that a scheme for design-led manufacturing will be launched to build a strong ecosystem for 5G as part of the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme.
To enable affordable broadband and mobile service proliferation in rural and remote areas, 5 per cent of annual collections under the universal service obligation fund will be allocated.
With the rollout of 5G service, the government will aim to increase mobile network penetration to rural areas so the residents can have the same access to e-services, communication facilities and digital resources as compared to the urban populace.
The minister said that the contract for laying optical fibre in all villages, including remote areas, will be awarded through the BharatNet project through PPP in 2022-23. It is expected to be completed by 2025.
5G in India
As per media reports, 5G services will be first launched in major cities including Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad.
Major telecom companies, including Airtel, Reliance Jio and Vi are testing their 5G networks. According to NDTV, the government is also discussing with telcos and other stakeholders on the spectrum auctions that will set the final phase for 5G rollout.
As per a report by the Times of India, the government will be giving a massive push to telecom infrastructure across the country by adding as many as eight lakh mobile towers, more than double the current number, over the next two years.
The government will also aim to connect three out of four mobile towers through optical fibre to increase their data-carrying capacity.
With inputs from agencies
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