National Telecommunications Institute for Policy Research, Innovation and Training (NTIPRIT), Ghaziabad hosted a two-day workshop on 5G use case labs, awareness, and pre-commissioning readiness at IIT Gandhinagar. This event was inaugurated by Mona Khandhar, principal secretary, Department of Science & Technology, Government of Gujarat. More than 100 participants from 18 institutions in the western region actively participated in the workshop.
The workshop aimed to nurture innovation in 5G technology use cases, particularly focusing on the establishment of a hundred 5G use case labs across India, funded by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT). Alongside IIT Gandhinagar, these labs will be established in 18 institutions of the western Region. Spearheaded by the Standards-Research and Development (R&D) -Innovation (SRI) division at DoT headquarters, the policy, implementation, and capacity-building aspects related to these labs are being meticulously managed to ensure timely installation and effective utilisation by faculty, students, and start-up communities. These labs are part of 100 5G labs being established across the country, announced during the India Mobile Congress (IMC) held in October last year.
During her address, Mona Khandhar underscored the importance of developing use cases for optimal utilisation of 5G networks and urged for the swift rollout of the 100 5G Labs. She emphasised the need for enhanced coordination among academic institutions to leverage these labs effectively, while commending the DoT for its proactive initiative in their establishment. professor Amit Prashant, dean of Research and Development at IIT Gandhinagar, emphasised the necessity of innovation and lauded this initiative for its potential societal impact. Additionally, Robert Ravi, deputy director general (SRI), DoT, and Atul Sinha, deputy director general at NTIPRIT also shared their insights with the participants.
Throughout the workshop, various potential use cases of 5G were presented by startups and industry representatives such as RJIO, Elena Geo Systems, CEQU Labs, QPiAI India Private Limited, and Finnara Technologies Private Limited, spanning sectors including enterprises, education, agriculture, health, and e-commerce. Deliberations were held among faculty members from IIT Gandhinagar, engineering colleges of the western region, industry representatives, researchers, students, and DoT officers.
