The ITU-APT (International Telecommunication Union – Asia-Pacific Telecommunity) Foundation of India (IAFI), in a letter to the minister of Communications and Development of North Eastern Region, urged immediate delicensing of the lower 6-gigahertz (GHz) band (5925-6425 megahertz) to bolster domestic manufacturing, innovation, and exports across sectors, as most future products will embed Wi-Fi 6E modules. IAFI cautioned that India’s industrial exports could be constrained without timely access to this prime 6 GHz spectrum.
IAFI has also requested the minister to promptly delink the study on the feasibility of automatic frequency coordination (AFC) for outdoor use, assigned to the newly formed Department of Telecommunications (DoT) committee since such an exercise will take time, and instead swiftly notify rules for low-power indoor (LPI) and very-low-power (VLP) operations.
Additionally, the government of India had already announced, via draft rules issued on May 16, 2025 (GSR-316E), its intent to delicense the lower 6 GHz band for Wi-Fi. However, despite five months having elapsed, the final rules are still pending.
