NEW DELHI: US tech giant Apple has provided nearly 1 lakh jobs in the past one-and-a-half years in the country, Union Telecom Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Tuesday. Vaishnaw, while speaking to this reporter, said this was possible due to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Make in India” efforts.
“When the Prime Minister launched the ‘Make in India’ programme, people said many things about the scheme...but he was focused on this point only. Today, we can see the result,” said Vaishnaw. In 2022, the Cupertino-based company shifted its focus to India after its prime manufacturers and assembling plants in China faced a complete shutdown in 2022 due to its zero Covid policy.
Last month (January 2022), Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal said Apple Inc is planning to ramp up its production in the country from 5-7% to 25%. The country’s telecom sector has been conferred on “global government leadership award” by the London-based telco body GSM Association (GSMA). Talking about the major shift in the smartphone industry in the country, Vaishnaw said India used to import 99% smartphones from all over the world just 10 years ago, but thanks to the scheme, 99% of smartphones (in India) are now made in India.
“This is a big achievement,” said the minister. This year, according to Vaishnaw, India will export mobile phones worth $10 billion. “Now there is the entire component ecosystem here, as volumes have increased. In the coming years, you will see exponential growth in electronics manufacturing and telecom manufacturing,” added the minister.
On the deployment of 5G in the country, the minister said India will cover 100% of the 5G network by the end of December 2024. So far, 5G services have been launched in 387 districts by Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel across the country. Jio is deploying a 5G standalone (SA) network, whereas rival Airtel is deploying a 5G non-standalone (NSA) network. “By the end of December 2024, we should achieve 100% coverage. 1 lakh base transceiver stations (BTSs) have been installed today.” The government will table Telecom Bill 2022 in the Monsoon session as the second draft of the bill is almost ready.