Himachal Pradesh: Giu village in Spiti gets surprise call from PM Modi as hamlet gets mobile network for first time

Lahaul and Spiti (Himachal Pradesh) [India], April 18 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacted with the villagers of Giu in Spiti Valley on Thursday after the village got a mobile network for the first time.
The small village in the Lahaul and Spiti district of Himachal Pradesh lacked mobile connection, due to which people had to travel long distances to make phone calls.
PM Modi asked how the people in the village were able to manage without a mobile network for all these years.
The villagers elaborated on their experience and said they had to travel 8 km to make a phone call. They also thanked Prime Minister Modi for connecting their village with mobile network.
During the conversation, PM Modi said that when he came to power, there were around 18,000 villages which didn't have electricity connections. He said that the government is working to ensure that mobile network reaches every part of the country.
"You all will find it surprising that there were 18,000 villages that didn't even have electricity connection and we connected the villages with electricity. Now our government is working to expand mobile networks across every corner of the country. I am working to make sure that no corner remains without a mobile network," PM Modi said.
"Today will provide a giant leap to the Digital India initiative that mobile network has reached a small village, Giu in Lahaul and Spiti. When I got to know about the situation here, I was surprised and I thought of bringing connection here," he added.
The PM Modi-led BJP government launched the Digital India campaign in 2015. The initiative aims to make government services available online and increase online connectivity across the country. (ANI)