6 lakh villages to be connected with optical fibre in next 1,000 days, says PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during his Independence Day 2020 speech on Saturday, announced over 6 lakh villages of India will be connected through high-speed internet via optical fibres in the next few years. He said the government vows to finish the task in the next 1,000 days. "This goal will be met in the coming thousand days. In the coming 1,000 days, every village in the country will be connected with optical fibre," the PM said.

The PM said before 2014, only five dozen panchayats in the country were connected with optical fibre but right now around 1.5 lakh of them have been connected with high-speed optical fibre internet. "In the last five years, 1.5 lakh gram panchayats in the country have been connected with optical fiber," he said.

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Talking about Digital India campaign, the PM said about Rs 3 lakh crore have been transacted from BHIM UPI in the last one month alone. He also stressed on the importance of education to make India self-reliant. To build a modern India, the country has got a new national education policy, he said.

He said considering India's resolve to become self-reliant, many big companies today are turning towards India. "We have to move forward with the mantra of 'Make for the world' along with 'Make in India'," he said.

Urging Indians to have a 'vocal for local' mindset, the PM asked Indians to appreciate "local products". "If we don't do this, our products will not get the opportunity to do better and will not get encouraged," he said. He also announced the National Digital Health Mission, under which every Indian will have a health ID, the Prime Minister said.

Also read: PM Modi's I-Day speech vocal for local, heavy on 'Atma Nirbhar' India