Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said every Indian village will be connected with optic fibre network within 1,000 days. He was addressing the nation on the Independence Day from the Red Fort in Delhi.

“We are rapidly expanding our fibre optic network,” he said. “It will reach every gram panchayat within 1,000 days.”

The prime minister said that only 60 villages had optic fibre network till 2014. “In five years, 1.5 lakh villages have received optic fibre network connection,” Modi said.

Modi said our dependency on the digital platform will only increase, adding that the “cyberspace” was also dangerous and it can easily be used to target the nation’s economy and development.

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“Because of this, India is vigilant and decisions are being taken [to protect the country from such crimes]... In some time, a new cybersecurity strategy will be presented before the nation,” he said.

Giving Digital India initiative a push, Modi said the participation of rural India is necessary to achieve the dream.

On Monday, the prime minister had inaugurated a 2,312-km-long submarine optic fibre cable network, which linked Chennai and Port Blair, NDTV reported. “A pandemic such as coronavirus was not able to hinder our speed and the work was completed before time,” he had said. “It was the responsibility of the nation to provide people of Andaman and Nicobar with connectivity. This is an early gift for the people of Andaman & Nicobar ahead of Independence Day.”

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