India Mobile Congress 2026 concludes with focus on agricultural AI, 5G automation and last-mile connectivity

The 10th edition of India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2026 concluded on Saturday with a focus on deploying artificial intelligence in agriculture, developing autonomous AI agents for 5G networks and expanding digital connectivity to rural areas, as India seeks to strengthen its position in global telecommunications standards.

Held over four days under the theme 'Scale Without Boundaries', the event brought together policymakers, industry leaders and technology developers to discuss applications of emerging technologies and their role in driving inclusive digital growth.

The concluding day featured the Global Initiative on AI for Agri-Food Systems Meeting, organised in collaboration with the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), alongside the Robotics for Good Youth Challenge India and the ITU Build-A-Thon, where engineers developed autonomous AI agents for 5G network orchestration.


The discussions also addressed sustainable financing for rural broadband deployment and the infrastructure needed to ensure that high-speed connectivity translates into economic benefits at the grassroots level.

Dr Bilel Jamoussi, Deputy Director of the ITU's Telecommunication Standardization Bureau, said agricultural AI must focus on solving real problems faced by farmers rather than technological sophistication alone.

He stressed the importance of developing AI solutions with farmers and establishing international standards to help successful applications scale beyond isolated pilot projects.

Syed Tausif Abbas, Senior Deputy Director General and Head of the Telecommunication Engineering Centre in the Department of Telecommunications, said the success of agricultural AI would be measured through improvements in farmers' livelihoods, agricultural productivity, supply-chain efficiency and food security.

He also emphasised that solutions must be transparent, inclusive and accessible, with attention to data quality, privacy and the needs of small and marginal farmers.

Industry representatives highlighted the need for common standards to improve data sharing and interoperability across agricultural technology platforms. Debasish Mahalik of the Bureau of Indian Standards said robust frameworks for data quality, privacy, security and interoperability would be essential to making digital agriculture scalable and sustainable.

The event also highlighted the need for stronger AI evaluation frameworks covering fairness, transparency, robustness and safety, particularly when systems operate under adverse conditions.

India Mobile Congress CEO Ramakrishna P said the 10th edition demonstrated the country's growing ambition to move beyond technology deployment towards developing indigenous solutions and contributing to international standards.

The event followed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's emphasis on indigenous intellectual property and sovereign semiconductors, while Communications Minister Jyotiraditya M Scindia outlined India's ambition to account for 10 per cent of global 6G patents.