India’s transformation in telecom and digital connectivity monumental: Scindia

India's Union Minister for Communications, Jyotiraditya Scindia, announced significant advancements in the nation's telecom and digital landscape during a bilateral meeting with Brazil's Minister of Communication, Frederico de Siqueira Filho. The two officials signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at enhancing collaboration in telecommunications and information and communications technologies (ICTs). This agreement was inked on the sidelines of the 12th BRICS Communication Ministers meeting held in Pune. The MoU seeks to promote digital innovation, bolster digital infrastructure, and encourage cooperation in emerging technologies. Scindia emphasized that India has achieved substantial progress in the telecom sector over the past decade, highlighting improvements in subscriber numbers, broadband access, and reduced service costs. He credited these achievements to the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. During his interaction with the media, Scindia outlined India's telecom milestones. He noted that the country currently boasts 1.33 billion mobile subscribers. Internet penetration has surged from 250 million to over a billion users. Broadband access has expanded from 65 million to a billion individuals nationwide. These developments have occurred alongside a strategy focused on cost reduction. Scindia recalled that a voice call once cost 50 paise per unit, whereas today it is just 0.03 paise per unit. A 1 GB data package, which previously cost ₹287, now costs less than ₹10. In terms of network coverage, India has deployed more than 2 million Base Transceiver Stations (BTS) and 20 lakh BTS for 4G services, ensuring coverage for 99.9% of the population. India initiated its 5G deployment in October 2022, achieving the fastest rollout globally. Currently, 5G services cover all districts in the country, reaching 86% of the population. The number of 5G subscribers is increasing rapidly, with 500 million users already registered. Scindia projected that by the end of 2030-31, the 5G subscriber base would surpass one billion. He reiterated that the Prime Minister emphasizes the importance of connecting people through robust telecom networks and improving their quality of life. Scindia mentioned that half of the world's digital transactions occur in India. According to him, the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) facilitated 242 billion digital transactions worth $3.2 trillion in the fiscal year 2025-26. Scindia detailed the eight pillars guiding future ICT cooperation within BRICS: universal and meaningful connectivity, resilient public infrastructure, trusted, secure, and people-centric ecosystems, digital public infrastructure, artificial intelligence and future network technologies, innovation startups and entrepreneurship, and digital scaling and enhanced cooperation among BRICS nations. He underscored the growing significance of BRICS in the global arena, noting that half of the world's population resides in this region, along with two-fifths of the global economy. Earlier, Scindia presided over the BRICS Communications Ministers meeting and stated that India will assume the chairmanship in 2026 with humility and a collective commitment to building resilience, innovation, cooperation, and sustainability. The ICT track theme for this period is "Innovate, Cooperate and Transform for a Resilient Future." Scindia expressed confidence in the potential of BRICS to influence global discourse on technology and communication policies. His remarks reflect India's strategic vision to leverage regional partnerships to drive technological advancement and economic growth.