5G services to be launched 'very soon': Telecom Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw

India will invest $30 billion for ensuring last mile accessibility to 4G and 5G services in every village, the minister said

Union Electronics and Information Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Sunday said 5G telecom services in India will be launched very soon and the government's target will be to cover the entire country within 2 years.

India will invest $30 billion for ensuring last mile accessibility to 4G and 5G services in every village, said the minister at an event on Sunday.

Vaishnaw said that the journey of 5G will be "exciting" and noted that the government has given a target of 80 per cent coverage in a short time frame to the industry.

"While several countries took many years to reach 40-50 per cent coverage, we are targeting a very aggressive timeline. We should definitely cover at least 80 per cent in a very short time frame," he said.

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While the government has introduced a several reforms in the sector, telecom service providers and infrastructure players now need to focus on and prioritise the quality of service at their end, he said.

The government last issued spectrum allocation letters to telecom service providers while asking them to prepare for the rollout of 5G services. With this spectrum allotment, India is in the final stage of rolling out high-speed 5G telecom services.

Reliance Jio has already announced it will launch high-speed 5G telecom services by Diwali this year in multiple key cities such as Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai. The company plans to expand its 5G network to each and every town, tehsil, and talukas across the country by December 2023, which is nearly 18 months from now.