Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday inaugurated Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited’s (BSNL) indigenously developed 4G network from Jharsuguda, Odisha, coinciding with the telecom operator’s silver jubilee.The rollout, described as a major step in advancing Digital India and Aatmanirbhar Bharat, places India among a select group of nations capable of manufacturing their own telecom equipment.Alongside the launch, Modi commissioned more than 97,500 mobile towers, including 92,600 4G sites, built at a cost of around ₹37,000 crore using homegrown technology.
Officials said the network is cloud-based, future-ready, and can be seamlessly upgraded to 5G, connecting over 26,700 previously unserved villages, including remote and left-wing extremism-affected areas.The initiative will add over 20 lakh new subscribers, expand digital participation in rural India, and promote sustainable infrastructure with the deployment of solar-powered towers.Calling Odisha’s resource-rich state a hub for future growth, Modi also announced plans for a semiconductor park, stressing that the decade ahead would mark Odisha’s transformation towards prosperity.Earlier, the Prime Minister hailed BSNL’s swadeshi 4G stack as a symbol of India’s journey “from dependence to confidence,” boosting jobs, exports, and fiscal revival.
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