A Department of Telecommunications (DoT) committee has reportedly recommended banning of China-based equipment makers from participating in 5G trials and the eventual auction process citing security concerns.
The decision follows Indian government imposing restrictions on public procurement from countries sharing their border with India.
According to industry sources, the committee has recommended banning of China-based equipment makers like Huawei and ZTE from participating in India’s 5G plans altogether. In addition, DoT has also recommended that National Security Advisor (NSA) to oversee the 5G trial participation to ensure there are no security breaches.
A six-member committee had been appointed comprising members from the DoT, Intelligence Bureau, and National Security Council to review the role that Chinese equipment players will have in the upcoming 5G trials and eventual auctions. The committee opined that it does not want to grant remote access to China-based equipment makers and does not want the data to go out from the country either.
