Industry stalwarts hail 5G rollout
5G is the foundational technology that unlocks the full potential of other 21st century technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), Internet of Things, robotics, blockchain and metaverse, said Reliance Industries chairman Ambani, who is also chairman of Jio Platforms that runs Reliance Jio Infocomm, India’s largest telecom operator.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched 5G telecom services in India on Saturday, which industry leaders like Mukesh Ambani, Kumar Mangalam Birla and Sunil Bharti Mittal hailed as having the potential to transform education, health care and the ease of doing business in the country.
5G is the foundational technology that unlocks the full potential of other 21st century technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), Internet of Things, robotics, blockchain and metaverse, said Reliance Industries chairman Ambani, who is also chairman of Jio Platforms that runs Reliance Jio Infocomm, India’s largest telecom operator.
Modi’s leadership had raised India’s prestige, profile and power globally like never before, Ambani said, adding that in today’s fast-changing world, there will be no stopping a resurgent India from soaring to the top.
Also read: ‘Many people made fun of my Aatmanirbhar Bharat vision’: PM Modi at 5G launch
5G technology is the acronym for five goals that can fundamentally transform India, he said. It would not be an exaggeration to say that “5G is like a digital Kamadhenu, the heavenly cow that grants whatever we desire,” Ambani said.
5G-enabled digital solutions can make high-quality education and skill development affordable to the common man, helping young Indians realise their full potential by arming them with world-class capability and competencies, he said. 5G can also deliver high-quality health care to rural as well as remote hospitals in a cost-effective manner, transforming them into smart hospitals without much additional investment, Ambani said.
5G can bridge the digital divide between rural and urban India by accelerating digitalization and intelligent data management of agriculture and trade services, and the informal sector, he said. It can make available the same power productivity tools to small-scale industry and commercial enterprises as are used by large capital-intensive businesses, Ambani added. “This will drive modernisation and profitability of all sectors of India’s economy,” he said.
5G can also power India’s emergence as the world’s intelligence capital by bringing artificial intelligence into every domain, which will help the country become a major exporter of high value-added digital solutions and services, Ambani said. “India may have started a little late, but we’ll finish first by rolling out 5G services that are of higher quality and more affordable,” he said at the inauguration event.
Addressing the launch event, Kumar Mangalam Birla called the advent of 5G a transformational event that proves India’s prowess on the global stage and reiterates the role of telecom technology as the bedrock of India’s growth.
He thanked Prime Minister Modi for his vision and leadership for a generational leap in technology that has resulted in India making a mark on the global stage.
Birla, chairman of Aditya Birla Group, which runs Vodafone Idea jointly with UK’s Vodafone Group, said the network of India’s third largest wireless operator is compatible for conversion into the 5G technology and the company will make all efforts to be a part the 5G revolution.
Also read: PM Modi launches India's 5G services at Mobile Congress
“Vodafone Idea has made a lot of preparations. The network is compatible for converting into 5G. As the Prime Minister said, this is not just a new technology but a revolution,” Birla told ANI news service. “Vodafone Idea will make all efforts to be a part of this revolution.”
Bharti Airtel’s 5G service will be available in eight cities from Saturday, chairman Sunil Bharti Mittal said, becoming the first company to launch 5G services in the country.
Mittal, who leads India’s second largest telecom operator, lauded Modi’s understanding of technology and connecting it with the nation’s progress. “We are proud and very fortunate that we have amongst us a leader who understands technology meticulously,” Mittal said.
He also acknowledged the contribution of Ambani to the growth of 4G.”I would like to remind Mukesh (Ambani) when he gave a lot of pace to 4G and we had run very fast to catch up with it,” Mittal said. “When Covid hit, the pulse of this nation did not stop even for a minute. Our work continued round the clock and its credit goes to the Digital Mission.”
