PM Modi announces 6G in Independence Day speech; what is 6G, 5G vs 6G

Addressing the nation from New Delhi's Red Fort on India's 77th Independence Day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the country is preparing to enter the 6G era soon. The prime minister further highlighted that India, in addition to becoming the third largest economy in the world, offers some of the most affordable mobile data plans and internet services globally.

Regarding 6G, PM Modi said that the task force is already established, and India is working to quickly switch from 5G to 6G. "We have formed a 6G working group," he said during his Independence speech at the Red Fort. Prime Minister Modi further stressed that the country has achieved the fastest national deployment of 5G. Reliance Jio recently announced that it has successfully introduced 5G mobile services in all 22 regions of India, which is well ahead of schedule.

Jio has established the essential framework for high-speed wireless Internet nationwide using various radio frequencies. The company claimed it had harnessed a combination of different spectrum bands, similar to multiple data highways, to bring 5G services to the masses. On July 19, Reliance Jio finalized the documentation for the Phase 1 minimum implementation requirements with the Department of Telecommunications ("DoT"). And by August 11, 2023, all mandatory DoT testing in all circles has been concluded, the company revealed. Following Jio is Bharti Airtel, which is working to bring its 5G services to all parts of the country.

As India becomes 5G-enabled, the government is slowly but steadily focusing on introducing 6G, and the work has already started. Now the question is: what exactly is 6G?

6G, as the name suggests, is the next step after 5G, although it still needs to be made real. It is said that with 6G, the Internet will be 100 times faster than 5G, which is already super fast. While 5G can reach speeds of up to 10 gigabits per second, 6G can reach a staggering 1 terabit per second.

During his 77th independence speech, Prime Minister Modi shared some exciting insights into what 6G could do. He said that with 6G, we could see factories controlled from afar, cars that drive and talk to each other independently, and even wearable devices that can understand our feelings. He was also very focused on sustainability. 6G supports sustainability as most 6G compatible devices will be battery-powered.

6G will be much more powerful and faster than 5G. Imagine being able to download a vast amount of data, like 100 movies, in just one minute. That is the speed we can expect. Also, 6G will bring us closer to the digital world with things like "digital twins", like virtual copies of natural things and cool holograms. Plus, virtual reality will feel even more real, making our online experiences more realistic.

But there's more to 6G than just speed. 6G will be unique because it can work both on the ground and in the sky, which is not the case with 5G. In simple terms, a single device, like your future phone or tablet, could use different technologies to connect, whether you're on the ground or flying high on a plane. This will link countless machines and devices. The arrival of 6G will blur the lines between our physical reality and the digital realm, truly revolutionizing how we live and interact with technology.