India's "buffering" ended with Congress: Union Minister Scindia hits back at Kharge over his criticism of Digital India mission

New Delhi [India], July 2 (ANI): Union Minister of Communications Jyotiraditya Scindia slammed Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge while responding to his 'X' post, which targeted the Union Government for making "false claims" and "unfulfilled promises" about the Digital India mission.
The Union Minister mentioned that India's era of "buffering" ended with the Congress regime, whereas the nation has shifted to 5G under Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Jyotiraditya Scindia thanked Congress president Kharge for another opportunity to "enlighten" him and stated that every time the opposition has questioned the government, they have responded with "results".
Scindia asserted that whenever the Congress government offered "dial-up" promises, the Union Government led by PM Narendra Modi delivered and built a "world-class" telecom network.
"Bharat's era of 'buffering' ended with the Congress. Under the Prime Minister, the nation shifted to 5G. Thank you, Mallikarjun Kharge, for yet another opportunity to enlighten you. Each time you have questioned us in the past, we have responded with results. For years, while your party offered dial-up promises, we built and delivered a world class telecom network, UPI, Aadhaar, and BharatNet, on the ground, and at scale", Jyotiraditya Scindia said in his post on 'X'.
The Union Government celebrated the tenth anniversary of its Digital India mission on Tuesday. On the occasion, Prime Minister Narendra Modi shared a blog titled "A Decade of Digital India" on his official LinkedIn handle, celebrating 10 years of the Digital India mission.
He described how India has transformed from limited internet access and digital services in 2014 to becoming a global leader in digital technology in 2024.PM Modi said that earlier, people doubted if Indians could use technology well. But the government trusted the people and used technology to bridge the gap between the rich and the poor.
Today, digital tools have become part of everyday life for 140 crore Indians -- from learning and business to accessing government services.
In 2014, India had about 25 crore internet connections. Now, it has over 97 crore. High-speed internet has even reached remote areas like Galwan and Siachen. The country's 5G rollout is one of the fastest in the world, with nearly 5 lakh base stations set up in just two years.
PM Modi highlighted platforms like UPI, which now handles over 100 billion transactions yearly. Through Direct Benefit Transfers (DBT), Rs 44 lakh crore has been sent directly to people, saving nearly Rs 3.5 lakh crore by cutting out middlemen.
He shared how platforms like ONDC and GeM are helping small businesses grow by connecting them with big markets. ONDC recently crossed 200 million transactions, and GeM has reached over Rs 1 lakh crore in sales in just 50 days. The SVAMITVA scheme has given more than 2.4 crore property cards and mapped over 6 lakh villages.
India's digital tools, including Aadhaar, CoWIN, DigiLocker, and FASTag, are now being utilised and studied by other countries. CoWIN helped in managing the world's largest vaccination drive, issuing 220 crore certificates.
India is now among the top 3 startup ecosystems in the world, with over 1.8 lakh startups. The country is also growing fast in artificial intelligence (AI). Through the India AI Mission, India is offering access to powerful AI tools at very low cost, making it a global hub for digital innovation.
PM Modi said that the next 10 years will be even more transformative. India is moving from using digital tools to leading the world with them. He called on innovators and entrepreneurs to build technology that helps and unites people, and to make India a trusted global partner in the digital world. (ANI)