**Lucknow:** Building on the pledge of Swadeshi and Atmanirbhar Bharat, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will dedicate the country’s first Swadeshi 4G network to the nation on Saturday from Jharsuguda, Odisha. The launch of this service marks not just a technical milestone but a historic step toward fulfilling the vision of Digital India and Make in India.
Under Prime Minister Modi’s leadership, India will become the fifth country worldwide to develop and deploy a fully Swadeshi 4G telecom stack. Simultaneously, with the proactive efforts of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Uttar Pradesh will receive special benefits from this groundbreaking achievement.
The grand event in Odisha will also be broadcast live at Indira Gandhi Pratishthan (IGP) in Lucknow, where CM Yogi Adityanath and Union Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary will witness this momentous occasion.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has consistently described Swadeshi products as the backbone of Atmanirbhar Bharat, while CM Yogi Adityanath has emphasized that ‘Swadeshi’ is not merely an option but the foundation of a strong new India. This vision is now taking shape with BSNL’s initiative, which will serve as a special gift to the state of Uttar Pradesh.
On this occasion, PM Modi will inaugurate 97,500 mobile towers and 443 Swadeshi towers across the country, with an investment of about Rs 37,000 crore. This revolutionary step will provide high-speed digital connectivity for the first time to more than 24,000 people from 240 villages in Uttar Pradesh who previously had no network access.
This ambitious initiative aims to extend digital services to remote areas across India, including Uttar Pradesh’s border and backward regions where mobile connectivity was either non-existent or limited to 2G networks.
BSNL’s Chief General Manager (UP East), Arun Kumar Garg, stated, “BSNL has so far established 4G services at 6,659 locations in Uttar Pradesh. Out of these, 142 sites were approved through the Digital Bharat Nidhi (DBN), and work on 141 has been completed. The UP government provided Gram Sabha land free of cost to facilitate this technological advancement.”
He added that the 4G network will now also reach Border Out Posts (BOPs) and Border Intelligence Posts (BIPs). In Uttar Pradesh, 68 sites have been sanctioned for the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) along the India-Nepal border, thus strengthening national security.
Furthermore, 2G services in left-wing extremism-affected districts of Chandauli, Mirzapur, and Sonbhadra are being upgraded to 4G. Out of 78 locations in these areas, work on 25 sites has been completed.
BSNL, in collaboration with C-DoT, Tejas, and TCS, has developed this Swadeshi 4G technology in a record 22 months. The network is designed for easy software upgrades to 5G in the future.
This initiative has connected over 26,700 previously unserved villages across the country, including many in Uttar Pradesh, benefiting more than 20 lakh new subscribers.
Uttar Pradesh has made significant contributions to this development, focusing especially on border and backward areas. With this project, India has become the fifth country in the world to develop and implement a fully Swadeshi 4G telecom stack.
Out of BSNL’s 92,600 4G towers nationwide, 18,900 towers have been installed under the Digital Bharat Nidhi program. This expansion marks a major stride toward achieving the goals of Digital India and Atmanirbhar Bharat, as well as symbolizing BSNL’s remarkable comeback.
The Chief General Manager also highlighted BSNL’s recent financial turnaround. For the first time in 18 years, BSNL has recorded profits in two consecutive quarters: Rs 2,262 crore in Q3 FY 2024–25 and Rs 280 crore in Q4.
The company’s total annual loss reduced by 58% to Rs 2,247 crore, compared to Rs 5,370 crore in FY24. Operating revenue increased by 7.8% to Rs 20,841 crore, while EBITDA more than doubled to Rs 5,396 crore, with margins improving to 23.01%.
These achievements demonstrate that the government’s revival package and strategic investments have equipped BSNL with the financial strength it needs.
At a press conference held in Lucknow, alongside CGM UP East Arun Kumar Garg, CGM UP West Arun Kumar Singh, PGM S&M New Delhi Deepak Garg, DDG DoT New Delhi Rajesh Kumar Soni, and Additional DG UP East Virender Kumar were also present to discuss the initiative and its implications.
https://www.freepressjournal.in/uttar-pradesh/ups-remote-border-areas-will-get-the-swadeshi-4g-network