‘5G rollout calls for $100-b investment over 5-7 years’

There is a need for more investment in fibre infrastructure to make 5G a reality, RS Sharma, Chairman, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) said here on Thursday.

Speaking at India Digital Summit organised by the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), he said, “5G is going to have important use-cases in India because it will be a platform, over which, all the applications are run. But, it will not happen, if there is no fibre.”

India only has 22 per cent of mobile towers connected to fibre, unlike countries such as China, where majority of them are connected to fibre and rest through wireless.

There is also a need for policy, regulation and huge investment to enable 5G. “We are looking at least $100-billion investment for fibre in the next 5-7 years. The National Digital Communications Policy (NDCP) contains those set of policies and statements, and we need to operationalise those to ensure investment,” he added.