Jyotiraditya Scindia says Centre keen to launch satellite services; spectrum pricing key

Union Minister for Communications Jyotiraditya Scindia told reporters on Wednesday that the central government is eager to start satellite communication (satcom) services in India. It noted that a few key factors would have to be determined first.

“The government is eager to start satellite service in India, but the same depends on two factors — the government's responsibility to fix the spectrum price and assign the airwaves, and the companies' obligation to comply with the security regulations,” he told reporters.

On the timeline, he said that when both those things are done, “then you can start executing on the satellite service”.

He added, “We are doing our best to get that spectrum assignment price on board as soon as possible, and it will be my effort to ensure that that is done before any one of the companies has complied with all their requirements from their end.”

‘No change to SIM Binding rules. security takes precedence’

ANI further reported that when asked about any change in the government's stance on SIM binding rules, the minister stressed that national security takes priority over possible revenue gains.

Notably, in December, the government directed online messaging apps such as Signal, Telegram and WhatsApp to require an active SIM linkage for device use, mandating the order with the aim of plugging security gaps used in large-scale digital frauds, PTI reported.

ANI said he told reporters off camera that there was “no thought on relaxing the mandatory logout of web sessions beyond six hours” and that the rules remain “as they are”. He also clarified that the logout requirements only affect virtual connections, not direct connections on phones, it said.

“Security issues take precedence on national interest grounds when weighed against potential revenue impacts,” Scindia added.

Spectrum auction: TRAI releases list of reserve price, band plan

Scindia also confirmed that the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) had submitted its recommendations to the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), and this is under consideration.

He added that these “recommendations would be evaluated and the specific timeline would be released at a later date”, ANI reported.

Trai on 24 February released a list of reserve prices, band plans, among other key details for the International Mobile Telecommunications (IMT) network's spectrum auction, according to an official release.

• For the next round of bidding, the 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz, 2500 MHz, 3300 MHz, and 26 GHz spectrum bands are being auctioned.
• According to the official announcement, the auctioned spectrum will be reserved for 20 years.

‘India poised to lead the world in satcom’

In October last year, Scindia projected that the Indian satcom market, valued at $4.3 billion in 2024, is expected to triple to $14.8 billion by 2033, underscoring both the economic and strategic potential of the sector.

In his address at the India Mobile Congress 2025, the Minister said that with bold policy reforms and a commitment to innovation, India is poised to lead the world in satellite communications. He also called for “a coordinated, milestone-driven satcom programme uniting government, industry, startups, academia, and international partners”.

He also announced a ₹900 crore National SATCOM Monitoring Facility, which will safeguard spectrum assets and strengthen India’s satellite gateways.