Guwahati, Oct 14: Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw has proposed establishing a Vizag-Sittwe (Myanmar) link to strengthen digital connectivity in the North-Eastern states, highlighting the need to enhance the existing RailTel network.

He was addressing Bharat AI Shakti, an event hosted by Google ahead of its participation in the upcoming India AI Summit.

The minister highlighted AI services as a key emerging sector in India’s digital economy, urging Google to leverage the facility for talent and job creation. He welcomed Google’s TPUs (Tensor Processing Units) to compete with Nvidia’s GPUs (Graphics Processing Units) as part of the common compute infrastructure under the India AI Mission. The Minister also highlighted that the AI Hub would significantly advance the goals of the India AI Mission, emphasising the need for large-scale reskilling and upskilling of IT professionals amid rapid AI-driven changes. He urged Google to support the industry in this effort.

He noted that extending the cable via Myanmar to Mizoram would be a major step forward, as the railway line up to Sairang is already complete, and work is underway to extend it to the Myanmar border as directed by the Prime Minister.

The Minister emphasised the importance of undersea cable connectivity, stating, “The Andaman and Nicobar Islands are strategically located. Singapore is already overburdened. Why can’t we make Andaman the next major hub for global internet data transfer. From the Government of India’s perspective, we will provide full support for this initiative. The Andaman Islands can help Google and other internet-based organisations connect to Southeast Asia, Australia, and other regions that are seeking new data capacity.”

The Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, N. Chandrababu Naidu, said on this occasion, “This significant investment in Andhra Pradesh marks a new chapter in India’s digital transformation journey. We are proud to host India’s first truly gigawatt-scale data centre and Google’s first AI Hub in India, which is a testament to our shared commitment to innovation, AI adoption, and long-term support for businesses and startups in the state.”

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