India is targeting the rollout of 6G telecom network, which will provide ultra-high speed internet connectivity, by the end of the decade, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Tuesday.

India currently has 3G and 4G telecom networks and companies are gearing up to launch 5G over the next few months.

Speaking at the silver jubilee event of telecom and broadcast regulator TRAI in New Delhi, he said it is estimated that the 5G network rollout will add USD 450 billion to the Indian economy.

“This is not just increasing internet speed but also the pace of development and creating jobs,” he said, adding the 5G technology will bring positive change in governance of the country, ease of living and ease of doing business.

It will boost growth in agriculture, health, education, infrastructure and logistics, he said.

Connectivity, Modi said, will decide the progress of the country in the 21st century and so modern day infrastructure needs to be rolled out.

According to the Prime Minister, a task force has started work on rolling out a 6G network by the end of the decade.

Taking pot shots at the previous Congress-led UPA government, Modi said the 2G era was symbolic of policy paralysis and corruption.

The country, under his government, has moved transparently to 4G and is now going to 5G.

Teledensity and internet users are fast expanding, he said, adding that mobile manufacturing units in India have expanded from two to over 200 and the country is now the world’s biggest mobile manufacturing hub.

The PM also said that his government has encouraged healthy competition that has led to India having one of the cheapest telecom data charges in the world.

Indigenous 5G test bed in telecom sector is an important step in India’s self-reliance, he added.

“The country’s own 5G standard has been made in the form of 5Gi, it is a matter of great pride for the country. It will play a big role in bringing 5G technology to the villages of the country”, he said.

The Prime Minister said that the ‘whole of government approach’ is important for the regulators like TRAI also for meeting the present and future challenges.

“Today regulation is not limited to the boundaries of just one sector. Technology is inter-connecting different sectors. That’s why today everyone is experiencing the need for collaborative regulation. For this it is necessary that all the regulators come together, develop common platforms and find solutions for better coordination”, the Prime Minister said.

IT & Telecoms Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, his junior mister Devusinh Chauhan and junior minister for MIB L. Murugan, apart from the leaders of telecom and broadcasting sectors, were among those present on the occasion.