India's 6G Ambition: Minister Urges C-DOT to Take Indigenous Tech Global
At C-DOT's 43rd Foundation Day, Minister Scindia urged the telecom R&D body to lead India's 6G push, commercialize indigenous tech, and target global markets.
Union Communications Minister Jyotiraditya M. Scindia has called on the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT) to spearhead India's next-generation telecom ambitions. Speaking at the organisation's 43rd Foundation Day, he urged the research body to accelerate work in 6G, artificial intelligence, quantum technology, and cybersecurity, while also focusing on taking its indigenous innovations from the lab to global markets.
Scindia highlighted India's telecom evolution, noting the country lagged in 4G, kept pace with the world in 5G, and is now positioned to lead in 6G. He credited C-DOT's indigenous technology development for this shift, stating that the organisation's capability gives India the confidence to lead the world in 6G.
The Minister stressed that the next phase of telecom will be defined by networks that are secure, trusted, resilient, and intelligent. He urged C-DOT to move beyond research and development, focusing on turning its technologies into marketable products. The goal, he said, is to create technologies that are affordable, dependable, scalable, and globally competitive, moving from products made in India to products made in India for the world.
Scindia pointed to C-DOT's existing achievements, noting its indigenous 4G core has been deployed across more than 100,000 towers nationwide. He said the organisation must now build on that success, adding that India has already written the standards for 6G.
Beyond core telecom, Scindia highlighted C-DOT's potential contributions in cybersecurity, quantum key encryption, post-quantum cryptography, and disaster-resilient networks. He also urged the organisation to apply advanced communications across agriculture, infrastructure, defence, and the green and blue economy.
Addressing the workforce, Scindia noted that more than half of C-DOT's 1,565 employees are under 30 years old. He called on the young team to drive the organisation's contribution to India's development goals by 2047.
India's Bharat 6G Vision, launched in March 2023, aims to make the country a frontline contributor to 6G design, development, and deployment by 2030. The government has supported this push through two testbeds, 100 5G labs at academic institutions, and approval of 104 research proposals on 6G network ecosystems. The vision focuses on affordable, sustainable, and widely available connectivity, with 6G expected to support applications using AI, advanced imaging, and real-time data processing.