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The government has approved 136 research and development projects worth nearly Rs. 543 crore under the Telecom Technology Development Fund (TTDF), covering frontier technologies such as 6G, quantum communications, satellite and non-terrestrial networks, optical systems, indigenous 5G core and telecom security, Minister of State for Communications Dr. Chandra Sekhar Pemmasani informed the Rajya Sabha yesterday.
The government has also released the Bharat 6G Vision Document to position India as a global leader in 6G by designing, developing and deploying next-generation technologies that provide ubiquitous, intelligent and secure connectivity, a government press release on a Rajya Sabha question quoted the Minister having said yesterday.
Replying to a written question, the minister said 5G services have now been rolled out across all States and Union Territories and are available in 99.9 percent of the country’s districts.
The number of 5G Base Transceiver Stations (BTSs) has increased from 140,623 as on March 31, 2023, to 562,971 as on June 30, 2026, he added.
The minister said the government has undertaken several measures to strengthen telecom and digital communication infrastructure, including launching a centralised Right of Way portal and notifying the Telecommunications (Right of Way) Rules, 2024 to simplify approvals and speed up deployment of telecom infrastructure.
He, according to the release, added that the BharatNet project is expanding broadband connectivity to Gram Panchayats and villages.
Pemmasani said the 4G saturation programme is extending mobile coverage to uncovered villages, with around 24,000 mobile towers commissioned under the Digital Bharat Nidhi-funded 4G Saturation Project and other mobile connectivity projects till June 2026.
He also said the Department of Telecommunications’ Production Linked Incentive (PLI)scheme, with an outlay of Rs. 12,195 crore, is supporting domestic manufacturing of telecom and networking products by encouraging incremental investments and sales. (Image of Minister is a file photo)
