• Source:JND
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday inaugurated Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited's (BSNL) homegrown 4G network from Jharsuguda, Odisha, in a landmark event for India's telecom industry. The launch coincided with BSNL's silver jubilee celebration, marking the government's emphasis on self-reliance in key digital infrastructure.

Officials hailed the launch as a major step in expanding connectivity and reducing the rural-urban digital gap. An official statement noted, "The rollout of the 'swadeshi' 4G network is a transformative step in line with the Prime Minister's vision of Digital India, bridging the digital divide and empowering rural communities, while paving the way for BSNL's 5G upgrade and integration."The project is expected to serve more than 20 lakh new subscribers.

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Alongside the network launch, PM Modi inaugurated over 97,500 mobile towers built by BSNL, including 92,600 with the new 4G setup. Developed at an investment of nearly Rs 37,000 crore, these towers rely fully on indigenous technology, placing India among a select group of countries with homegrown telecom manufacturing.

During the event, the Prime Minister underscored Odisha’s importance in the country’s growth journey. "Odisha has been immensely gifted by nature. Odisha has seen many decades of suffering, but this decade will take Odisha towards prosperity. This decade is very important for Odisha... The Central government has recently approved two semiconductor units for Odisha... A semiconductor park will also be constructed in Odisha," he said.

The India-made 4G network has been designed to be cloud-based and future-ready, with the ability to seamlessly upgrade to 5G. According to officials, the initiative will bring mobile connectivity to over 26,700 villages that were previously unserved, including 2,472 in Odisha. Many of these areas lie in remote, border, or left-wing extremism-affected regions.

BSNL also revealed that part of the network expansion will rely on solar-powered towers, creating the country’s largest cluster of green telecom infrastructure.This is aimed at ensuring sustainable growth while improving mobile access for rural populations.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis emphasised the importance of the move, saying, "Under PM Modi’s leadership, we have developed pure indigenous technology. When connectivity reaches villages, only then do we connect them with the world."

Additionally, PM Modi rolled out India’s 100 per cent 4G saturation network through the Digital Bharat Nidhi programme. The initiative, being executed in a mission mode, will connect between 29,000 and 30,000 villages.

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With this project, BSNL is not only strengthening India’s digital backbone but also setting the stage for a smoother transition to 5G in the near future.