India rolls out 5G services: PM Modi dedicates it to the nation

Beginning Saturday, India will get 5G mobile services — almost five years after the country took its first steps towards the launch of the next generation of mobile telephony. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch 5G in select cities on October 1, while inaugurating the sixth edition of India Mobile Congress in New Delhi.

While the government has not specified the cities that the PM will first launch 5G services in, telecom operators have revealed how they plan to roll out 5G services on their network. Reliance Jio, which was the top spender at this year’s 5G spectrum auctions bidding an amount of more than Rs 88,000 crore, said in August that it will roll out high-speed mobile internet services on its 5G network by Diwali in metro cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata by Diwali this year. Bharti Airtel which was the second highest spender in the auction has said that 5G will be available on its network in all urban parts of the country by the end of 2023. Also, the company said that 5G will be available in towns and key rural areas by March 2024.