5G will ensure that India will not only be a consumer of technology, but also play an active role in the development and implementation of technology, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said while launching 5G services in the country on October 1.

Speaking at the sixth India Mobile Congress, Modi said that from rural villagers to labourers and the poor, everyone is a stakeholder in the 5G experience, stressing on the all encompassing nature of 5G which is expected to reduce the technological and economic divide among rural and urban India.

He said the technology can be used to expand the financial system, raise productivity and provide intensive development across all spheres of society. Speaking to an audience which included Reliance Jio's Mukesh Ambani, Bharti Airtel's Sunil Bharti Mittal and Vodafone Idea's Kumar Mangalam Birla, Modi said the MSME industry should be provided with opportunities to construct hardware components for the technological requirements of the telecom industry.