Minister of State for Communication, Government of India, Devusinh Chauhan held a meeting with state officials, Department of Telecommunication and Posts at Rhododendron Hall, Chumukedima, Dimapur, on 9th October 2021. Addressing the gathering the Union Minister said that Ministry of Communication is one of the oldest and also the youngest in terms of usage of new technologies. If connectivity reaches the last mile, democracy has reached the last mile, he said. Speaking on the importance of telecommunication, he said, that there is no sector which has not been affected by the pandemic and with paradigm shift, every sector started online means for its operation. Admitting challenges in providing telecommunication services in the northern states, he said that the government is exploring new technologies and innovations to solve the issues. However, Nagaland is a shining example in terms of Teledensity, which is highest among the northeastern states, he added. Stating the purpose of his visit, he said that there is no dearth of funds for improvement of telecom sector and further assured that there will be increased coverage of telecommunication network connectivity as well as increased funds for funds for further improvement. Advisor for IT&C, NRE and S&T, Mmhonlumo Kikon while appreciating the visit of the minister said that witnessing a lot of union ministers coming to the state shows that policy making were not just left to the centre but an active interaction and communication between the centre and the state which enables the facilitation of opinion, needs, assessment to be done at the personal level. Expressing need for more bandwidth in the state Advisor, said that telecom activity had become the most critical infrastructure for providing transparency speed in governance, development, security and the only means to overcome the geo-climatic obstacles to communication in the state. He said that lockdowns due to pandemic, people have witnessed the paradigm shift in the way they work and under the circumstances, there is a growing need for more bandwidth, more connectivity to support the online activities. Highlighting the special challenges faced by the state in terms of infrastructure and also the need for solution to connectivity problem, he stated that there were extraordinary potential of human resources and in order to tap and convert it into livelihood, the primary concern and need is the access to network, improvement of bandwidth. The programme was chaired by Principal Secretary to Chief Minister, IT&C and Power, K D Vizo. During the meeting participants also presented their status and also put forward suggestions for better services. (Watimenla, IA Dimapur)