Reliance Jio is all set to kickstart the 5G network rollout in India starting the second half of 2021. The announcement was made by Mukesh Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director of Reliance Industries, during his keynote at Indian Mobile Congress (IMC) 2020. He added that 5G network rollout will be done using an indigenous-developed network.
Ambani said Jio is committed to pioneering the 5G revolution in India. The ultimate goal of the telecom operator is to make 5G connectivity widely accessible and affordable for users in the country. This is not surprising to see as Jio was also the carrier that made 4G LTE connectivity available at dirt-cheap prices. It even offered free and unlimited voice calling to users.
Jio is already rumored to be working on an affordable 5G phone for Indian users. It is said to be working in collaboration with Google for the development. It is expected to land in the coming months. Another major team-up that the company is a part of is with Qualcomm which is for a faster 5G network rollout in the country. It should be noted that despite all the deals in place, Jio will have to wait until the government auctions, 5G bands. There are no words on when that might happen but could happen as early as next year.