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Uttar Pradesh's Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Tuesday launched 'Project Ganga' to bring high-speed digital connectivity to every village in Uttar Pradesh, calling it the new foundation for digital prosperity. The project will be rolled out first in 21 districts and aims to reach all 57,000 Gram Panchayats and 8,000 Nyaya Panchayats across the state.
"Broadband connectivity has become a basic necessity in today's era. The faster the internet speed, the faster the pace of development. Project Ganga is an important initiative towards realizing Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of Digital India," Adityanath said. He added that just as Maa Ganga has been a source of development from Gangotri to Gangasagar, "Project Ganga will similarly become a strong foundation for Uttar Pradesh's digital prosperity." The initiative targets connecting approximately 20 lakh families to the digital economy and creating more than one lakh direct and indirect employment opportunities. Under Project Ganga, a network of 8 to 10 thousand Digital Service Providers will be developed. Local youth will be trained as DSPs to build fiber broadband networks and deliver digital services in their areas. Chairman of the State Transformation Commission Manoj Kumar Singh said, "It is not merely a broadband connectivity expansion project but a new model of digital entrepreneurship in rural Uttar Pradesh. Under the project, local youth will be developed as Digital Service Providers (DSPs), who will establish fiber broadband networks and provide digital services in their respective areas." The project will create opportunities through digital education, telemedicine, online skill training, e-governance, cyber security, public Wi-Fi, smart agriculture and IT-based employment. Hinduja Group's broadband arm OneOTT Intertainment Limited will act as 'Knowledge Partner' and 'Implementation Enabler' on a 'No Profit, No Loss' basis. Group President Corporate Affairs Sunil Kumar Chaddha said Uttar Pradesh is the first state to adopt this model and "approximately 50 per cent of the beneficiaries will be women". Finance Minister Suresh Kumar Khanna said Project Ganga is "an important initiative towards the overall development of Uttar Pradesh" and will accelerate transformation by bringing digital services to every village. IT Minister Sunil Kumar Sharma said the project "will open new opportunities for the state's youth, students, farmers, and entrepreneurs". (ANI)
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