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Starlink to launch in India by end-2025: MoS communications
Starlink received a Unified License from the Department of Telecommunications in July, but clearance was given only after it agreed to India’s strict security rules
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Starlink will launch its satellite broadband services in India by the end of 2025, minister of state for communications Dr Chandra Sekhar Pemmasani told HT. The company received a Unified License from the Department of Telecommunications in July, but clearance was given only after it agreed to India’s strict security rules, the minister told PTI a day earlier.
As part of the clearance, Starlink is barred from copying, decrypting, or routing Indian user traffic through systems located abroad. The security framework mandates that all satellite communications be routed through earth station gateways within India, which will serve as a critical checkpoint for data traffic.
The conditions are mandatory for all satellite communication firms, and Starlink has accepted them. With approvals in place, the company is expected to roll out services in phases, focusing first on remote and underserved regions. Commercial operations are likely to begin by December 2025, subject to final spectrum allocation and infrastructure readiness.
Dr Pemmasani spoke to HT on the sidelines of the 42nd Foundational Day of Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT) organised in New Delhi. “Given the geo-political risks and the faster change of technology, institutions like C-DOT have never been of greater importance. Therefore, when it comes to AI, 6G, quantum secure communications, they are doing wonderful things,” said the minister.
Dr Pemmasani also highlighted C-DOT’s wider role, from providing secure communications to the armed forces during Operation Sindoor to building a cell-broadcast platform for disaster alerts.
“India today faces geopolitical pressures not from one, but two countries; challenges that test our economic strength on the global stage. In this context, the Prime Minister’s Independence Day address is a reminder of why self-reliance is so critical,” said telecom secretary Neeraj Mittal at the event.
Dr Pemmasani noted that C-DOT is now the fifth player worldwide, after Ericsson, Nokia, Huawei and Samsung, to develop an indigenous 4G and 5G stack. India’s homegrown 4G and 5G technology, built by C-DOT, is powering nearly one lakh BSNL towers, putting the country among a select group with its own telecom systems.
