Union Minister of State for Communications  Shri Devusinh Chauhan inaugurated World Telecom Day Conference to mark the observance of World Telecommunication and Information Society Day today, May 17, 2023 at Dr Ambedkar International Centre in New Delhi. He inaugurated exhibition showcasing innovations in Telecom by start-ups, released Commemorative Stamp on completion of 20 years of USOF He also unveiled USOF@India book and open ran Test Bed Project.

Facilitation of top performing Bharat Udyamis was done. Four top performing Udyamis ensuring India’s last mile connectivity were facilitated and report on First International Quantum Communication Conclave was also released. In addition, DoT employees and best-performed Field Units of DoT were awarded for their contribution & outstanding work in the field of Telecom. Best performing award for field unit of DoT was given to LSA Andhra Pradesh, CCA NE-II, and WMO, IMS Chennai. Officers of outstanding contribution in the field of telecom were also awarded.

At the launch, Shri Devusinh Chauhan said that today is World Telecom Day and ITU along with world is also celebrating this day with India. He mentioned this day is of great importance as  today, under leadership of  Late Atal Bihari Vajpayee, USOF division of DOT was formed 20 years ago.

The Minister said that India has entered into Amrit Kaal and mentioned about the significant events of  opening of ITU area office and launch of 5G service in India. He highlighted that India has witnessed the fastest growing Telecom Network and the fastest 5G rollout covering over 680 districts with 5G in the country. He said that the spectrum allocation has been done in  a transparent manner and in record time. Along with the above, the development of indigenous 4G/5G stack have led to India emerging as a Global Telecom Power. 

Shri Devusinh Chauhan further added USOF and Bharatnet  have played an important role in bridging digital divide and providing connectivity to the last mile. More than 6 lakhs villages are connected with 4G and 2 lakh gram panchayats with optical fiber which has brought digital inclusion. He has also emphasised that due to various reforms of DoT, an inclusive development infrastructure has been developed to provide ease of living, ease of doing business and citizen centric services.

The Minister also mentioned about the Panch Pran outlined by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and asked all stakeholders to put efforts in this directions by coming together, overcoming challenges and contributing in the Technology Revolution of New India

Secretary (Telecom) Shru K Rajaraman felicitated officers involved in development of  Sanchar Saathi portal. The portal is citizen centric for users Safety and security.  Link of the portal is (https://sancharsaathi.gov.in). He concluded the conference citing the importance of working together to achieve a reliable, robust and secure Telecom Infrastructure.  He mentioned about the efforts being put to ensure last mile connectivity and how technology & innovation have proved to be catalyst for improving the same. He added about the challenges in technology landscape and in order to overcome the same, stakeholders have to come together to provide affordable and sustainable services to the citizens.

Department of Telecommunications is relentlessly working towards ensuring digital inclusivity across the country.  Initiatives like Atmanirbhar Bharat, Indian stack & creation of robust Telecom infrastructure has sparked digital revolution in New India thereby creating more jobs & global confidence.

Background

World Telecommunication Day has been celebrated annually on 17 May since 1969, marking the founding of ITU and the signing of the first International Telegraph Convention in 1865. It was instituted by the Plenipotentiary Conference in Malaga-Torremolinos in 1973 as Resolution 46. The purpose of World Telecommunication and Information Society Day (WTISD) is to help raise awareness of the possibilities that the use of the Internet and other information and communication technologies (ICT) can bring to societies and economies, as well as of ways to bridge the digital divide. Turkey, decided to celebrate both events on 17 May as World Telecommunication and Information Society Day.

Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) was brought into force from April 1^st, 2002, in India to provide universal access and universal services to ICT, especially in the rural and remote regions of the country. This year also marks completion of 20 years of USOF activities connecting Rural and Remote areas of India. In these 20 years, various schemes covering range of projects from Village panchayat telephones to Rural BB to Mobile Tower to OFC projects and even R&D projects were implemented. The USOF India is one of the most active and vibrant institutional mechanism which has variety as well as depth in its noble aim of connecting the unconnected.

The CDoT has developed test bed for Open RAN helping innovators, startups, MSMEs and other stakeholder’s to test the ORAN technology. This initiative shall facilitate involved in R&D in the area of Open RAN (Radio Access Network) by extending testing facility for proliferation of Open RAN ecosystem in India.

The “First International Quantum Communication Conclave” held on 27^th and 28^th March 2023 at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi was organised by Telecommunication Engineering Centre in collaboration with C-DOT and TSDSI. The Conclave was a resounding success and the national and international experts shared insights on the roadmap and the developments in the Quantum Technologies along with their potential impact and applications in the various sectors viz. healthcare, energy, finance, Telecom, Defence, etc.

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RKJ/DK