 "PM calls for global framework for digital tech at India Mobile Congress")
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called for establishing a global framework for digital technology.
Speaking at the inauguration of the 8th India Mobile Congress (IMC), Modi urged institutions to recognise its significance for global governance.
He emphasised that this issue was raised by India during its G-20 Presidency.
Stressing the need to create ‘dos and don'ts’ for technology on the global level, the PM highlighted the borderless nature of digital tools and applications. He called for international collaboration in combating cyber threats and collective action by global institutions. He drew parallels with the aviation sector, which already has well-established frameworks.
PM Modi called upon the World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly (WTSA 2024), being held alongside the IMC, to take a proactive role in creating a secure digital ecosystem and safe channel for telecommunication.
“In an interconnected world, security cannot be an afterthought. India's Data Protection Act and National Cyber Security Strategy reflect our commitment to building a safe digital environment,” he said.
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The Prime Minister urged members of the assembly to create standards that are inclusive, secure, and adaptable to future challenges, including ethical artificial intelligence (AI) and data privacy standards that respect the diversity of nations.
“India’s mobile and telecom journey in the 21st century is a subject of study for the whole world,” Modi said.
He added that while mobile and telecom were seen as a facility across the world, however, telecom was not just a medium of connectivity but a medium of equity and opportunity in India.
India had a mobile phone user base of 1.2 billion, 950 million internet users and digital transactions of more than 40 per cent of the entire world in real-time.
Billed by the government as India's premier technology event, IMC is being held this year alongside two key global telecom meetings in Delhi.
India will be hosting the WTSA during 15-24 October preceded by the Global Standards Symposium (GSS 2024).
The International Telecommunication Union (ITU), a specialised United Nations agency for information and communication technologies, of which India is a part, conducts the WTSA every four years to plan its standardisation programme.
The PM underlined that WTSA empowers the world via consensus while IMC strengthens the world through connectivity. Therefore, Modi said consensus and connectivity are conjoined in this event. He stressed the need for the combination in today’s world, which is marred by conflict.
The government believes India’s participation at the meetings is crucial for shaping global agendas in emerging technologies such as AI, 6G, Internet of Things, satellite communications, and quantum computing.
Major leaps made
“In just 10 years, India has laid optical fibre, which is eight times the distance between Earth and the Moon,” Modi said.
He said the cost of internet data in India is now as low as 12 cents per GB compared to many countries in the world where one GB of data is 10-20 times more expensive.
“Today, every Indian consumes about 30 GB of data on an average every month,” he said.
The PM said that telecom, as a medium, was helping in bridging the gap between villages and cities as well as rich and poor.
Modi listed out the four pillars of Digital India — Low-priced devices, extensive reach of digital connectivity, easily accessible data and goal of ‘Digital First’. These were identified and worked upon simultaneously, leading to good results.