'There's talk of one party, but three have got Satcom licences': Jyotiraditya Scindia

Communications minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Friday said the government follows a technology-agnostic policy, treating satellite communications as one of several options alongside fibre optics and mobile broadband, with consumers free to choose their preferred technology and service provider.

Scindia's remark came in the backdrop of SpaceX chief executive Elon Musk calling the situation surrounding Starlink's efforts to enter the India market as "troubling" after spending five years to comply with "every single law and requirement of the government of India".

Asserting that India does not allow monopolies, Scindia said that three companies-Reliance Jio, OneWeb and Starlink-have already received licences to provide satellite communication, while Amazon Kuiper is in the application process.


The minister said licensed operators can commence commercial operations after the two final milestones are completed, which include finalising the spectrum pricing framework by the telecom regulator and the telecom department, and each licensee completing security clearances mandated by the home ministry.

"Whether spectrum will be assigned for auction, that decision was taken. Secondly, what the pricing regime would be, and Trai (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India) and DoT (Department of Telecom) have been in conversations on that. We are close to taking the final decision with respect to that," Scindia said. "There is a lot of conversation about a particular party, but there are three parties that have got licences," he said.

"Once the revenue charge system is finalised, and once each party individually, based on their achievement of milestones with regard to security concerns and prerequisites, has fulfilled the requirements, then obviously they can start operations."

On Thursday, Musk stepped up his campaign for Starlink's entry into the Indian market, questioning why Starlink, which he claimed is licensed in over 165 countries and has complied with every single law and requirement of the Indian government, has still not been given a "licence".

In response, the government clarified that the country's authorisation framework for telecom and satellite services was fair and non-discriminatory and that any suggestion that it was being applied selectively is baseless and misconceived.

Speaking at the 10th edition of the India Mobile Congress, Scindia said the government has launched a flagship pilot initiative to deliver digital services to villages using the BharatNet network for last-mile connectivity.

Initial pilots were set up in three villages in Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, where 19 services were delivered directly to residents, eliminating the need for them to travel to block or district headquarters, he said.