The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) is reportedly not looking at delicensing more spectrum in the 6 GHz band that the tech industry has been demanding, as it believes enough airwaves have already been made available to take care of Wi-Fi requirements.
However, DoT is open to a marginal increase in the transmit power requirements for outdoor Wi-Fi devices, which can be done by using 6 GHz airwaves, partially accepting the industry’s request. But this too may be allowed only if such a change does not lead to interference with existing applications or satellite operations, particularly defence-related functions.
DoT in May 2025 had delicensed 500 MHz spectrum in the 6 GHz band for Wi-Fi and low-power wireless equipment requirements. Officials in the department feel that the intent for delicensing or allocating spectrum without auction in the band was to develop new applications, particularly those that work in low- and very-low-power systems.
Already around 700 MHz spectrum is available for Wi-Fi use in the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands. As per experts, the additional 6 GHz spectrum can be used alongside existing Wi-Fi airwaves to achieve better speeds and capacity. Experts said the 6 GHz band can offer data speeds of up to 9.6 gigabits per second (Gbps), compared to 1.3 Gbps in the 5 GHz band and 600 megabits per second (Mbps) in the 2.4 GHz band. More than 84 countries, including the US, UK, and South Korea, have already delicensed the 6 GHz band for Wi-Fi services. The government, however, feels it would not be possible to delicense more than 500 MHz in the band as the rest could be utilised for mobility services, particularly 5G and 6G technologies.
