With the aim of providing connectivity to every corner of the country, the government has approved constructing 25,000 new towers in the next 500 days with an investment of Rs. 26,000 crore, according to Ashwini Vaishnaw, the Union Minister for Communications, Electronics, and Information Technology and Railways.
Vaishnaw made the announcement at the three-day "Digital India Conference of State IT Ministers," which began on October 1, and concluded on Monday.
On the first day, detailed discussions on key key key areas of Digital India initiatives were held with States and Union Territories under the supervision of Vaishnaw. Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar and Minister of State for Communications Devusinh Chauhan, both from 12 states and territories, namely Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Goa, Manipur, Uttarakhand, Telangana,
Vaishnaw stated that connectivity for Digital India and its reach to every corner of the country is crucial. He announced that Rs. 26,000 crore has been approved to install 25,000 new towers in the next 500 days, according to a public statement issued by the Ministry of Electronics and IT.
At PM Gati Shakti, he congratulated all states and UTs for their speedy onboarding. He shared that the special assistance to states for capital expenditure worth Rs. 2,000 crore has been aided.
He encouraged states to be proactive and make business friendly policies to attract businesses in their states. Despite the motto of Sabka Saath and Sabka Vikas, he stated that all states and universities, all including small states, have an essential role in the improvement of Digital India and in the realization of the AatmaNirbhar Bharat and Trillion Dollar Digital Economy.
On the second day, MeitY organized three sessions on ''IT Rules, Online Gaming, and Data Governance,'' ''Digital India Bhashini & Digital Payment,'' and ''MyScheme and Meri Pehchaan.''
The Secretary-General, MeitY, and Alkesh Kumar Sharma, encouraged the State and State Department to align their policies in tandem with the policies published and in-making by the Central Government. He also said that states and state administration should leverage the latest measures of Central Government in order to improve citizen centric and business centric services, resulting in greater living and ease of doing business.
On the third day, MeitY organized five panel discussions titled "Attracting Startups to Tier 2 Cities and Monitoring Them" on "Use of Emerging Technology in Public Services," "Making India Talent Nation," "Realization of Digital Government in States," and "Make-in-India for the Globe India as Semiconductor Nation."