India is aiming for technological self-reliance, especially in defence, space, telecom and electronics, to transform from a software hub into a creator of core technologies. Although progress is visible through enhanced production and digital infrastructure, the scale remains insufficient for achieving developed-nation status by 2047. Challenges persist due to fragmented research across notable institutions such as the Indian institute of technology (IITs) and Indian Institute of Science (IISc), with a limited number of researchers in advanced domains. This fragmentation impedes the development of comprehensive systems, causing delays in technological advancement. A more focused national strategy is essential, concentrating resources on critical technologies, enhancing research efforts significantly and ensuring coordinated activities among institutions. By linking isolated research initiatives and committing to long-term investments, India can leverage early successes to achieve enduring technological prowess. At the Emerging Science, Technology and Innovation Conclave, industry leaders examined these challenges in depth, shared their perspectives on India’s current trajectory, and outlined the key steps needed to achieve technological self-reliance. Key takeaways from the discussion…

Strengths and gaps

India has proven that it can build full systems by integrating components sourced from multiple countries. This is the 4G and 5G stacks came together, how radio units were assembled, and end-to-end networks were rolled out. However, system integration is only the first step. The next stage requires India to design and own the components inside these systems, including radios, baseband units, waveforms, and the underlying hardware and software that drive performance. Without this shift, the country remains dependent on external suppliers for technologies it ultimately wants to lead.

Within this context, the biggest structural gap lies in hardware. For years, hardware development took a back seat while software flourished, partly because software seemed faster and easier to scale. The deeper issue is educational. Most students and engineers are not exposed to hands-on building. Labs are limited, tinkering is rare, and education leans heavily towards theory. Even in top institutions, practical immersion is minimal, which limits the pipeline of engineers who can design, prototype and debug real systems. Changing this requires more than curriculum updates; it demands a cultural shift towards building, experimenting and learning by doing.

Alongside the educational gap lies a mindset problem. Across universities, corporates and investors, short-term thinking often outweighs long-term innovation. Deep-tech and hardware products take years, not months. They call for patient investment, tolerance for failure, and confidence that the early struggle will eventually pay off. The current ecosystem still favours quick wins, trading activities and revenue-first models, and this makes it hard for deep-tech companies to survive their early stages. Many promising efforts lose momentum simply because the system is not designed to support long gestation cycles.

Further, semiconductors highlight the contrast between potential and reality. India has exceptional design talent and decades of experience working with global chip companies, yet the country produces only a handful of wafers a month. Much of the semiconductor policy focus still leans towards manufacturing, even though the greatest value lies in design, IP creation and building a pipeline of companies cap­able of owning the architecture of critical chips. This gap is also an opportunity. With the right support, India could carve out leadership in a select set of chips essential to telecom, satellite systems, defence platforms and electronics. The capabilities ­exist. What India needs now is scale, direction and long-term commitment to turn design strength into a strategic advantage.

Key sectors

Against this backdrop, a few sectors stand out as strategic levers for India’s ­technological ambitions.

Satellite technology is emerging as one of India’s strongest pillars, especially with the evolution of the Navigation with Indian Constellation (NAVIC) system. Its capabilities already extend beyond navigation into areas like distress alerts for fisher­men, soil moisture mapping for agriculture and tracking of commercial vehicles. These uses show how a navigation system can deliver safety, agricultural insight and real-time monitoring across sectors. The next phase pushes NAVIC further, with the introduction of new L1 signals that make it compatible with smartphones and broader consumer devices. Plans to expand into medium earth orbit will strengthen coverage, reliability and resilience, positioning India for a stronger role in global satellite-based services. The move towards navigation technologies designed for lunar missions reveals how quickly this field is advancing and how India is preparing for a future where space-based systems shape everyday life and deep-space exploration.

Telecom standards is another area where India aims to influence the global conversation. India-specific approaches like 5Gi were attempts to introduce ideas tailored to local needs, such as more efficient rural coverage and ubiquitous connectivity. These demonstrated that India can bring unique perspectives into global standards instead of only adopting what others create. The broader opportunity lies in the upcoming generations of communication systems such as 6G. Here, India has the chance to propose architectures, contribute to foundational ideas and push for frameworks that reflect its scale and usage patterns. The aim is not just participation but influence, by integrating India’s requirements, complexities and strengths into global technology design.

Underlying these sectoral efforts is a recurring theme, that is, the need for disruptive, India-first innovation. The often-cited example is the Unified Payments Interface, which worked because it broke away from existing models and created a system built from the ground up for India’s needs. A similar leap is possible in telecom. Instead of competing within an entrenched global ecosystem dominated by few players, India can rethink how networks should be built, how components should interact and how openness can be embedded from the start. India’s large telecom market gives it enough weight to push new approaches and introduce ideas that reflect local realities while shaping global thinking.

To translate these ambitions into reality, India needs a stronger innovation ecosystem around testing, validation and deployment.

Innovation ecosystem

A strong technology ecosystem depends on the ability of start-ups and companies to test, refine and deploy products in real environments. This is where India still has ground to cover. Developing hardware, telecom equipment or semiconductor components requires long timelines, repeated testing ­cycles and consistent feedback, and the cost of certification and validation often becomes a barrier. Smaller firms struggle because they lack access to large-scale test beds or controlled environments where products can be evaluated safely and repeatedly. When this access is missing, promising innovations tend to stall before reaching maturity.

In this context, a more flexible regulatory framework becomes essential. Many companies face delays linked to approvals, compliance steps and certification layers that slow down innovation. When testing requirements are expensive or rigid, new products take months longer to stabilise. A lighter, more supportive regulatory approach, especially for indigenous technol­ogies, can help move products from prototypes to deployment faster. Reducing these friction points allows companies to focus on engineering rather than navigating procedural bottlenecks.

Telecom operators sit at the centre of this ecosystem. There is no inherent resistance to adopting Indian technologies, but operators expect the same performance and reliability they receive from global vendors. The difference between an early-stage domestic product and a fully proven system becomes visible in these trials. Bridging that gap requires faster testing, stronger test beds, clearer evaluation cycles and predictable pathways for product improvement.

Some early steps are emerging. Dedicated policies for proof-of-concept trials, incubation spaces and controlled test environments signal a shift towards supporting homegrown solutions. As these opportunities expand, companies gain the room to innovate without being limited by cost, access or timelines. Strengthening these enablers is essential for building a competitive, self-reliant technology ecosystem that can support both early innovation and long-term growth.

Domestic demand

Alongside ecosystem support, domestic demand plays a decisive role in whether indigenous technologies scale.

For any indigenous technology to succeed, it must first find a strong domestic market. This is one of the most important factors in determining whether India’s innovations can grow from prototypes into glo­bally competitive products. Without meaningful early adoption at home, the journey to scale becomes significantly harder.

India’s technology landscape shows a clear pattern. Progress accelerates when the country becomes the first major customer. This applies across sectors, from navigation systems like NAVIC to telecom stacks deployed in live networks. When domestic demand supports early versions of a product, companies gain real feedback, refine their designs faster and prove performance under realistic conditions. These early ­cycles are what help technologies move from concept to commercial viability.

The early market gap is especially challenging for hardware and telecom systems, which require time, patience and multiple rounds of testing before they reach maturity. Start-ups often struggle during this period because they lack predictable access to trial environments. They need early platforms where their products can be deployed, evaluated and improved without the pressure of immediately matching global competitors.

This is where initiatives that provide controlled environments and proof-of-concept opportunities become vital. Access to test beds, supportive operator environments and structured programmes for evaluating new technologies provides the bridge between invention and commercialisation. When companies know they have a place to test and a pathway to reach users, they gain the confidence and runway needed to grow.

Strengthening domestic adoption is not just a boost for start-ups; it is the foundation for long-term self-reliance. A steady, predictable market at home gives Indian technologies the scale and credibility they need before taking on global markets. This makes domestic adoption the key link between innovation, resilience and sustainable technological leadership.

The road ahead

Looking forward, the central question is how India can align its many moving parts into a coherent whole. The country’s long-term ambition to become a developed technology power depends on how well its institutions, industries and innovators work together. The capabilities already exist across research groups, start-ups, established companies and government programmes, but these efforts often run on parallel tracks rather than converging toward shared goals. The gap is not in ideas or talent but in the alignment needed to turn these strengths into national-scale outcomes.

A unified ecosystem is the missing piece. Moving from fragmented work to coordin­ated national missions can help India scale in areas like next-generation communication systems, satellite technology, semiconductor design and end-to-end digital infrastructure. When research priorities align with industry needs, and when policy support connects directly to deployment challenges, progress becomes faster and more predictable. This is the kind of cohesion required to turn early-stage breakthroughs into widely adopted technologies.

The path forward is not about incremental steps but about decisive alignment, that is, bringing together research institutions that can push core science, start-ups that can take risks, companies that can build at scale, and operators that can validate technologies in the field. Each plays a different role, but the impact is greatest when they move in sync. With these pieces connected, India can shift from being a technology consumer to becoming a technology creator with meaningful global influence.

Reaching that point by 2047 requires clarity, focus and a commitment to scaling what already works. The potential is visible across sectors; the next chapter depends on channelling this distributed strength into a coordinated national movement towards technological self-reliance. Building this unified framework is the foundation for India’s transition into a mature, innovation-driven economy.

 

In early August 2025, Numaligarh Refinery Limited (NRL) initiated a significant development for both the refinery and telecom industries – it signed an MoU with Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) to deploy a dedicated private 5G network within its Assam refinery. The brief was simple yet demanding: deliver secure, high-reliability, low-latency connectivity for industrial workloads. By integrating a captive non-public network (CNPN), the official term for private 5G networks in India, the refinery aims to enhance operational efficiency and cybersecurity while enabling AR/VR-based training, digital twins and real-time IoT applications.

NRL’s plans are being supported by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT). On June 30, 2025, DoT launched a module on the Saral Sanchar portal to map enterprise demand and identify frequency bands for direct spectrum assignment, a reset prompted by a maturing device ecosystem in the International Mobile Telecommunications (IMT) bands and rising interest from system integrators.

Mapping India’s CNPN landscape

A CNPN is a private 5G network built for exclusive use by an enterprise within its premises such as plants, ports, campuses and hospitals. Traffic on these networks remains isolated from the public network. Meanwhile, policies, quality of service (QoS) and security can be tailored to operational needs. The concept of CNPNs was introduced in India in June 2022 with DoT’s guidelines and related licence changes. Uptake since then has been modest, but momentum is building as the authorisation framework becomes clearer and device support in IMT bands improves.

The four deployment routes that shape enterprise choices are:

  • Public slice (TSP-managed): A licensed TSP creates a logical slice on its public 5G network and aligns it with the enterprise’s policies and QoS. Under this model, patching, upgrades and change windows remain the operator’s responsibility.
  • TSP on-premises (isolated): The operator deploys a physically segregated radio and core network on the enterprise’s premises using its IMT spectrum. This model ensures predictable performance while compliance obligations lie primarily with the operator across the lifecycle.
  • Enterprise-run on leased spectrum: The enterprise, typically in partnership with a system integrator, installs and operates the on-premises stack while leasing IMT spectrum from a telecom operator. This model provides tighter control over policies and coverage while ensuring data remains local, but it requires higher capital outlay and stronger in-house skills.
  • Enterprise-run on directly assigned spectrum: The enterprise seeks spectrum directly from DoT and runs a fully self-managed network. This model offers maximum sovereignty over the radio layer and data, but also imposes the highest obligations in terms of audits, security and round-the-clock operations.

Limited adoption

While the CNPN framework, launched in 2022, introduced multiple routes for implementation – leasing, slicing and direct assignment – its adoption has remained modest for practical reasons. The device ecosystem for the bands initially “identified” for direct CNPNs was limited, which slowed procurement and certification. By mid-2025, DoT itself noted that support was “mostly available” in IMT bands, prompting the launch of its Saral Sanchar demand exercise to map real interest and shortlist workable spectrum options. In addition, authorisation ambiguity deterred buyers. Until 2025, enterprises and system integrators (SIs) had limited clarity on who could operate private networks, under which licence and with what obligations. Integrators have also stated that factories are unlikely to invest without a strong business case tied to outcomes and lifecycle management, hence they are pivoting to bundled offers that pair private 5G with edge computing artificial intelligence (AI) under service level agreements (SLAs).

Meanwhile, the Cellular Operators Association of India has stated that direct spectrum allocation for CNPNs to enterprises is “not tenable in India”, citing fiscal and security concerns, and has promoted TSP-delivered enterprise solutions via leasing or slicing. For buyers, the near-term translation is simple – plan around operator-anchored deployments while viewing direct assignment as a parallel policy track that may take longer to mature.

In practice, the lack of direct enterprise spectrum assignment does not stall adoption; it changes design choices. Refineries or ports seeking on-premises isolation today can opt for TSP-run isolated CNPNs, which meet compliance requirements, deliver predictable performance and can be structured with outcome-linked SLAs. Once direct licensing stabilises, enterprises that prioritise sovereignty can reassess their strategy.

Why 2025 seems different?

India now has a real industrial reference: the BSNL and Numaligarh Refinery MoU for a refinery-grade 5G CNPN. Meanwhile, Tech Mahindra is pitching private 5G for Industry 4.0 in India alongside operator partners, highlighting deployments in automotive manufacturing that pair private 5G with real-time analytics and connected robotics. The company has collaborated with Bharti Airtel to roll out its Chakan facility, India’s first 5G-enabled automobile manufacturing unit.

Recently, BSNL’s Kerala circle also announced India’s first standalone, on-premises 5G private network (CNPN) in the mining sector, reportedly deployed at the Amlohri Opencast Coal Mines, emerging as an industrial automation use case.

Overall, activity in 2025 has been centred around telcos and enterprise collaborations that package private 5G as managed solutions. The logic is straightforward – factories buy outcomes (predictable latency, reliable uplink, secure segmentation), not stacks. This has led to designs that combine radio access network (RAN), on-premises core, multi-access edge computing (MEC) and analytics under a single SLA. Tech Mahindra’s public narrative aligns with this approach, tying private 5G with real-time analytics and robotics in Indian manufacturing.

On the demand side, boards remain disciplined. They do not commit without a clear return on investment strategy, preferring lifecycle-managed offers that simplify skills, spares and change windows. Infosys’ leadership has also articulated this recently, echoing the demands of procurement teams in requests for proposals.

Where will CNPNs gain traction first? The most promising starting points are high-stakes environments where outages are costly and safety critical. These include refineries, steel and cement plants, ports, automotive body shops and logistics yards. These settings have consistent workload profiles – condition monitoring with on-premises analytics, machine vision for quality/safety, AR/VR-assisted maintenance, automated guided vehicles (AGVs) and robotics. NRL’s refinery represents a high-value use case for CNPNs.

The way forward

Looking ahead, four factors will shape India’s CNPN trajectory. First, post-survey band clarity and fees (which IMT bands DoT shortlists and under what prices and conditions) will define device portfolios and total cost of ownership. Final band choices determine which radios, devices and modules vendors bring to India and how quickly enterprises can scale. Second, the authorisation fine print – how the government implements the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s (TRAI) recommendations – will differentiate operator and third-party roles for lifecycle management, security obligations and reporting. Third, deployments in oil and gas, ports and steel will determine whether NRL is a template or a one-off. The trade press already points to active pipelines including operator-system integrator bundles in manufacturing. Fourth, SLAs are likely to become outcome-centric, formalising availability, maintenance windows and per-use-case latency/throughput targets in line with global factory benchmarks.

In the near term, scale will follow strong economics. As per industry estimates, India’s private 5G network market stood at $30.6 million in 2023 and is projected to reach $674.6 million by 2030 at a CAGR of 55.5 per cent.

Meanwhile, policy will still decide the long-term game. If direct enterprise licensing emerges with workable bands and fees, sovereignty-seeking sites will take that route. If not, slicing and operator-built isolated CNPNs on customer premises remain a compliant path to scale up at speed. Either way, CNPNs now appear less like trials and more like a repeatable playbook, starting with process-heavy environments and extending into adjacent use cases as device maturity and in-house expertise deepen.