PIB Summary- 9th February, 2023 | Current Affairs & Hindu Analysis: Daily, Weekly & Monthly - UPSC PDF Download

5G Services in the Country

Why in News?
Telecom Service Providers (TSPs) have started providing 5G services in the country from 01.10.2022 onwards. As on 31.01.2023, 5G services have been started in 238 cities distributed across all license service areas.
The rollout obligations are required to be met over a period of five years, in a phased manner, from the date of allocation of spectrum.
Further expansion of mobile networks beyond the mandatory rollout obligations depends on the techno-commercial consideration of the Telecom Service Providers (TSPs).

About 5G

• 5G is the 5th generation mobile network.
• It is a new global wireless standard after 1G, 2G, 3G, and 4G networks.
• 5G can be significantly faster than 4G, delivering up to 20 Gigabits-per-second (Gbps) peak data rates and 100+ Megabits-per-second (Mbps) average data rates.
• 5G enables a new kind of network that is designed to connect virtually everyone and everything together including machines, objects, and devices.
• 5G wireless technology is meant to deliver higher multi-Gbps peak data speeds, ultra low latency, more reliability, massive network capacity, increased availability, and a more uniform user experience to more users.
• Higher performance and improved efficiency empower new user experiences and connects new industries.
• With high speeds, superior reliability and negligible latency, 5G will expand the mobile ecosystem into new realms.
• 5G will impact every industry, making safer transportation, remote healthcare, precision agriculture, digitized logistics — and more — a reality.

Way Forward

• The various 5G aspects that were covered above provide fascinating perspectives on how cities will develop in the future.
• It will be necessary to establish hubs with 5G-propelled economic units, network infrastructure, and social provisions for the employees and their families, or what we refer to as the “5G islands.” These islands could take the form of townships tailored to employees in remote-working sectors or be centred on automatic or semi-automatic industrial clusters; oppo
• These islands may be built on top of existing cities or they may be positioned close to larger cities, much like the current satellite cities.
• The underutilised peri-urban areas may even see the development of these townships.

Conclusion

• The adoption of 5G-specific applications that make use of higher frequency bands will open up a variety of new growth prospects for the nation.
• If sound planning techniques are used, this new form of urbanisation can also be resilient and sustainable.
• Compact urbanisation can be combined with a variety of land uses and undeveloped natural areas in between to reduce the amount of land needed per resident and per job.
• Urban planners and policymakers must consider how 5G will affect urbanisation as it happens in order to create well-planned, effective, sustainable, and resilient urban systems in the future.

Quad Cooperation to Promote Responsible Cyber Habits

Why in News?
Quad Nations are launching a public campaign to improve cyber security across the Quad nations: the Quad Cyber Challenge.
The Challenge reflects the continuing Quad efforts to strengthen individuals’ and communities’ cyber security awareness and action, as well as to foster a more secure and resilient cyber ecosystem to benefit economies and users everywhere.
Internet-users worldwide are targets of cybercrime and other malicious cyber threats that can cost trillions of dollars each year and compromise sensitive, personal data.

Steps to be taken

• Routinely installing security updates
• Enabling enhanced identity checks through multi-factor authentication
• Utilizing stronger and regularly changing passphrases
• Knowing how to identify common online scams, like phishing.

The Challenge provides

• Resources, such as basic cyber-security information
• Training, for all users– from corporations to education institutions, small businesses, and individuals from grade school students to the elderly.

About QUAD

• The Quad is an informal strategic forum comprising four nations, namely –India, United States of America, Australia and Japan.
• One of the primary objectives of the Quad is, to work for a free, open, prosperous and inclusive Indo-Pacific region.
• The group for the first time met in 2007 on the side lines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
• It is considered an alliance of maritime democracies.
• The forum is maintained through meetings, semi-regular summits, information exchanges, and military drills of all the member countries.
• The motive behind the Quad is, to keep the strategic sea routes in the Indo-Pacific, free of any military or political influence.
• The core objective of the Quad is, to secure a rules-based global order, freedom of navigation and, a liberal trading system.
• The coalition also aims to offer, alternative debt financing for nations in the Indo-Pacific region.

Purpose of Quad

• Recently the U.S. has clarified that Quad is not a security or military partnership.
• Its purpose is to advance cooperation on key priorities in specific sectors that is consistent with international law
• It promotes shared values of its members and underpins peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.
• A U.S. State Department spokesperson said that “We work to support the rule of law, freedom of navigation and overflight, peaceful resolution of disputes, democratic values, and territorial integrity through open dialogue and information sharing on a diverse set of issue areas, including Maritime Security”.

Significance of Quad

• Quad is becoming a powerful mechanism and its significance is given below:
• Helping to vaccinate a big part of the world and getting a lot of vaccines out there,
• Strengthening maritime security to push back against aggression and coercion in the Indo-Pacific region,
• Working together on emerging technologies and making sure that they can be used in positive ways and an increasingly broad and deep agenda.