Dr. Neeraj Mittal, Secretary (Telecom), Department of Telecommunications (DoT) today inaugurated the three-day TTDF Symposium-2025 at the IIT Madras Research Park, Chennai, organized in collaboration with IIT Madras and Telecom Centres of Excellence (TCOE) India. Prof. V. Kamakoti, Director, IIT Madras, Shri Gulzar Natarajan, Additional Secretary (Telecom), Dr. Parag Agarwal, DDG (TTDF) and Prof. R K Ghanti, IIT Madras also shared the dais.

The Telecom Technology Development Fund (TTDF) is a flagship scheme of Department of Telecommunications(DoT), launched to boost indigenous R&D in next-generation telecom technologies and bridge the digital divide in rural and remote areas.

TTDF aims for synergy among academia, start-ups, research institutes, and the industry to build and develop the telecom ecosystem. Additionally, the Scheme aims to promote technology ownership and indigenous manufacturing, create a culture of technology co-innovation, reduce imports, boost export opportunities and creation of Intellectual Property.

TTDF has received over 1300 proposals for R&D funding. So far, 120 projects have been approved for funding exceeding ₹500 crore, and over ₹187 crore has already been disbursed to academic institutions, startups, MSMEs, and research bodies across India.

The TTDF Symposium-2025 has been organised to provide a platform where funding beneficiaries are coming together to discuss synergies and potential ways to take forward their R&D not only to a fruitful conclusion, but also to ensure that the entire ecosystem can benefit from the same. 

The symposium also witnessed announcement of the Multicore Fiber Testbed Project, aimed at advancing India’s optical communication infrastructure. This facility, jointly established by IIT Madras and STL Technologies, includes both underground (4.07 km) and aerial (1.20 km) cable installations. The cables incorporate 12 multi-core fibers (4 cores each) alongside 12 standard single-mode fibers. The Multi Core Fibre testing facility is accessible to academic and industry partners for assessing use cases and testing component interoperability within the MCF ecosystem.

Speaking at the inaugural session, Dr. Neeraj Mittal, Secretary, Telecommunications, emphasized that this is a pivotal moment in India’s journey—an opportunity to leapfrog in innovation. He highlighted the government’s consistent efforts over the past decade through various programmes to accelerate technological advancement. Stressing the importance of collaboration, Dr. Mittal urged stakeholders to work together to ensure optimal utilization of India’s resources.  In this connection, he informed the development of a dedicated portal aimed at enabling seamless sharing of common resources among all stakeholders.

Emphasizing the importance of collaborative input, the Telecom Secretary invited suggestions from stakeholders on a range of issues, including administrative processes, to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the Telecom Technology Development Fund (TTDF).

Prof. V. Kamakoti, Director of IIT Madras, acknowledged the significant support received from the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), noting that a substantial number of projects have been awarded under the TTDF scheme over the past two years. He exhorted all stakeholders and institutions to reciprocate the Government's efforts with extremely effective and useful deliverables.

Shri Gulzar Natarajan, Additional Secretary (Telecom), emphasized the need to harness collective strength to cultivate a dynamic culture of collaborative innovation—ensuring that India’s national aspirations are realized through effective execution and meaningful impact. He described the Telecom Technology Development Fund (TTDF) not merely as a funding tool, but as the Department’s flagship strategic initiative aimed at building sovereign capabilities in a sector vital to the country’s economic growth, national security, and social progress.

The event is being attended by around 500 participants including principal investigators, deans and faculty members, industry representatives, startups, MSMEs, and senior officials from DoT and other government departments. The Symposium would be having technical sessions, project showcases, and group synergy interactions to accelerate progress in emerging areas like 6G, AI/ML for IoT, quantum communication, and satellite networks. Senior officials from DoT, Bharat 6G Alliance, TSDSI, C-DoT, COAI, and leading telecom companies are participating.

The symposium is designed to:

• Strengthen collaboration among researchers, administrators, and industry.
• Streamline project execution by addressing financial, administrative, and technical challenges.
• Foster a community of innovation aligned with national priorities.
• Promote commercialization, IPR generation, and next-generation telecom development.

The TTDF Symposium 2025 marks a major step forward in realising India’s ambition to lead in telecom innovation through indigenous research, deep-tech development, and global collaboration.

About the TTDF Scheme

The Telecom Technology Development Fund (TTDF), launched on 1st October 2022 and implemented by Digital Bharat Nidhi (DBN), serves as a flagship initiative to promote innovation in the telecom sector by supporting R&D projects led by Indian academia, startups, research institutions, and industry.

Key Achievements under TTDF:

• TTDF 1.0 has sanctioned 20 projects with a total funding of more than ₹300 crore. These include: Development of Massive MIMO-based 5G antennas, Creation of an India-specific 5G Stack, Drone-based facial recognition solutions, Millimeter wave transceivers for rural deployment, Post-quantum secure communication platforms, LEO satellite communication technologies
• Under the Accelerated Research on 6G Ecosystem, 100 proposals have been approved with a sanctioned funding of more than ₹200 crore, focusing on: AI/ML optimization for IoT, Intelligent Reflecting Surfaces (IRS), Non-Terrestrial Network (NTN) solutions, Quantum-enabled communication systems, Wideband spectrum sensing, Federated and reconfigurable protocols
• The Testing and Certification Reimbursement Scheme, launched on 18th July 2024, offers up to ₹50 lakh in reimbursement for startups and MSMEs, supporting product testing and regulatory compliance.
• Two new initiatives under TTDF include: Quantum Encryption Algorithm (QEA), Quantum Standardization and Testing Labs – launched in October 2024

To date, TTDF has enabled funding of more than ₹500 crore across various telecom technologies, significantly advancing India’s capabilities in telecommunication domain.

 

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Samrat/Allen

(Release ID: 2137640)