India has rejected the claim made by American billionaire Elon Musk that “certain oligarchs” are blocking Starlink’s satellite communication services in India to maintain their monopoly in the country. In a statement, the Ministry of Communications asserted that India has a “fair, non-discriminatory authorisation framework for all telecommunication services,” including satellite communication services.
The ministry noted that under India’s regulatory framework, telecom licences have been granted to three Global Mobile Personal Communication by Satellite services based on non-geosynchronous satellite orbit-based satellite communications as part of its commitment to enable the provision of satellite communication services in India. “Under the terms and conditions of license, every such licensee is required to demonstrate compliance with security conditions. This is aimed at ensuring that services provided meet various security requirements to ensure safety of all users and their data.
Security assessment as part of this process is currently under way in respect of all the three licensees,” the ministry said.
It noted that at present, all the three entities are broadly at the same regulatory stage.
As and when this process is completed for a licensed entity, it may proceed to the next step of seeking assignment of spectrum, according to the Ministry.
