UNSHACKLING SATCOM: THE POLICY RESET INDIA NEEDS FOR VIKSIT BHARAT

India's connectivity gap demands a regulatory shift that can enable satellite networks to reach regions where terrestrial infrastructure cannot viably operate.

- By TV RAMACHANDRAN

India's digital revolution has transformed the lives of hundreds of millions, reshaping how people communicate, learn, work, trade, and access public services. Over the past two decades, mobile networks and broadband have driven extraordinary gains across governance, fintech, health, education, and commerce. Yet, despite this remarkable progress, a significant proportion of India remains outside the digital mainstream. Nearly 55% of the population still does not have internet access, let alone broadband connectivity.

Border villages, tribal belts, high-altitude areas, forest regions, deserts, river islands, and disaster-prone zones continue to suffer from unreliable or nonexistent broadband coverage. These landscapes are unforgiving, population densities are low, and the cost of laying fibre or building towers is often prohibitive. As a result, the country's digital divide has remained stubbornly high, ranging from 65% to 67% between 2020 and 2025, according to TRAI's Quarterly Performance Indicator Reports.

As India advances toward universal digital access, bridging this divide is not merely desirable; it is essential. Satellite communication, by virtue of its architecture and coverage capability, is uniquely positioned to play a central role in this next phase of digital expansion. The question is no longer whether satellite-based connectivity is required, but whether regulatory and policy frameworks will allow it to perform the role for which it is technologically suited and so urgently needed.

UNDERSTANDING THE CORE DISTINCTION

To understand why satellite communication, though indispensable, should not be treated like terrestrial networks, it is important to recognise how satellite systems function. At the heart of the policy debate lies a simple yet often overlooked reality: satellite and terrestrial networks are designed for fundamentally different operational contexts.