Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi

New Delhi, Oct 5: Union communications minister Jyotiraditya Scindia announced on Sunday that BSNL’s indigenously developed 4G network will be upgraded to 5G across India within the next six to eight months. Speaking at the Kautilya Economic Enclave 2025 in New Delhi, Scindia highlighted this milestone as a testament to India’s growing innovation and self-reliance in telecom technology.

He emphasized that India has now joined a select group of five nations capable of delivering a fully indigenous telecom ecosystem. The rollout of BSNL's 4G technology — developed in partnership with TCS, C-DOT, and Tejas Networks — marks the beginning of a nationwide digital transformation, with over 26,700 villages already connected through high-speed internet.

Scindia said every 4G tower launched under the Bharat Telecom Stack is 5G-upgradable, laying the groundwork for future-ready infrastructure. With BSNL turning profitable after 17 years and expanding its subscriber base from 78 lakh to 2.2 crore in just one year, the minister hailed it as a revival driven by innovation and strategic vision.

He further projected India’s rise as the world’s second-largest economy by 2027, attributing the country’s progress to its ability to convert global disruptions into opportunities.

The upcoming 5G upgrade is expected to enable affordable high-speed data access, and broaden digital services like e-learning, precision farming, and telemedicine across rural India — underscoring the government’s push toward inclusive digital growth.