The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) held the second meeting with stakeholders advisory committee (SAC) on telecom service providers (TSPs). The meeting was chaired by Jyotiraditya Scindia, Union Minister of Communications and Development of Northeastern Region.
The initiative seeks to engage all stakeholders to enhance and shape the future of India’s telecommunication ecosystem. The meeting also promotes inclusive and collaborative policy decision-making.
The first meeting identified the key themes for these discussions. The second SAC discussions revolved around international standards and India’s share in intellectual property rights (IPR) and standard essential patent (SEP) bridging connectivity gaps in telecommunications and improving the quality of telecom services.
Furthermore, SAC members emphasised systematically reorienting research to meet India’s needs and establish a vibrant standards community. India has already taken various initiatives including the launch of Bhart6G Vision, Bhart6G Alliance, patent, IPR support framework, and commissioning of testbeds. The country can aspire towards achieving 10 per cent of all 6G patents and one sixth contributions to global standards promoting India’s needs. The committee members proposed a 3-year roadmap for achieving it. As per SAC, for India to become a deep technology leader, proliferation of both wireline and intelligent wireless broadband networks, with reliable connectivity, is critical. The TSPs sought supportive policy framework to encourage investments towards the path of 100 per cent broadband coverage in country.
Additionally, Scindia urged SAC to outline a critical path to achieve the targets discussed and to define roles they see for different stakeholders, including the government, in achieving the same.
