Bhubaneswar: Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Thursday said that 5G internet services will be launched in Odisha before January 26 next year.
Shri Vaishnaw was addressing a programme organised to lay the foundation stone for the redevelopment of Bhubaneswar railway station here.
Earlier, Odisha was neglected in the telecom sector. But, now, the Modi government has allocated Rs 5,600 crore for development of the telecom sector in the state, he said.
“Modi Ji has taken the responsibility to provide 4G service to each village of Odisha. Now, no one can dare to say that Odisha is being neglected,” Shri Vaishnaw said.
It is pertinent to mention here that on October 16, the Minster said that 5G telephony services will be available in four cities of Odisha by March 2023 and 80 per cent area of the state will have access to the upgraded network by the end of next year.
PM Narendra Modi had on October 1 launched the 5G services that promise to provide ultra high-speed internet on mobile phones.
Earlier this week, the state, in a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, had approved a proposal to provide 2,000 sq ft of land each at 1,687 places to BSNL for 30 years at Re 1 per site per annum without any premium and incidental fees.
It will help provide 4G connectivity in 1,792 villages, Odisha Chief Secretary SC Mohapatra had said.
Shri Vaishnaw, the Railways Minister, has announced that a new train service will be introduced to Bhadrak from Bhubaneswar soon. He made this announcement on the request of newly elected BJP MLA of Dhamnagar, Suryabanshi Suraj.
The State has also been allocated around Rs 10,000 crore in the budget for railway infrastructure development in 2022-23, Vaishnaw said.
“The Modi government has raised the allocation for railways in Odisha to Rs 10,000 crore per annum from only Rs 800 crore during the UPA regime,” he said, claiming that “critics have no reasons to make the allegation of central negligence to the state’s telecom and railway sectors”.
The Union Minister also said that “railway projects will make progress if the State Government cooperates and provides required land”.
Shri Vaishnaw also praised Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan for his work for the development of Odisha. “Pradhan Sir has a holistic vision for Odisha. If it will be implemented, Odisha can become a trillion dollar economy,” he stated.
Union Coal Minister Pralhad Joshi, who was also present in the programme, claimed that Odisha has substantially gained from the central government’s policy for auctioning of mines.
The State’s revenue from the mining sector has touched Rs 50,000 crore from around Rs 5,000 crore in 2014-15, Shri Joshi said.
He also alleged that the States were “unable to garner adequate revenue from mining operations earlier” as a policy of ‘first come first served’ was followed.
Under the District Mineral Foundation (DMF), Odisha gets Rs 15,000 crore per year, Joshi said, adding that the fund can be utilised for development of mine areas and welfare of the poor and tribal people.
Under this Narendra Modi government, work is being done at a light speed, Pradhan said while mentioning about the announcement of running of a new train to Bhadrak on request of MLA Suraj. Within less than two hour, the announcement was made, he pointed out.