Minister of State for Communications and Rural Development, Dr Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar, inaugurated the second edition of the COAI DIGICOM SUMMIT 2026 in Delhi today. The summit is themed “India’s Techade: Accelerating and Shaping the Digital Future.” Speaking at the event, he said that India has come a long way and that the changes in the telecom sector have been transformative. He noted that technology is not standing still and that 6G, Artificial Intelligence and Quantum represent the next wave, which is both exciting and challenging. Emphasising collaboration, he stated that a strong telecom sector is built by both Government and industry.

Dr Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar, Minister of State for Communications and Rural Development, inaugurates and addresses the COAI DIGICOM SUMMIT 2026

In his address, Dr Pemmasani highlighted that under Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, the Government has re-engineered nearly every major lever of telecom policy. The Telecommunications Act, 2023 marks the first comprehensive rewrite of India’s telecom law in over 140 years, providing clear authorisation frameworks, stronger consumer protection and provisions for emerging technologies. The Reforms Package of 2021 restored predictability for financial viability through rationalised AGR, a four-year moratorium on past dues, removal of bank guarantees and a path to equity conversion. Right-of-Way reforms through the Gati Shakti Sanchar portal have rationalised fees and streamlined clearances, reducing timelines significantly. Spectrum rationalisation has been undertaken through the National Frequency Allocation Plan 2025 and predictable auction timelines.

He also highlighted that India’s BharatNet is the largest rural broadband programme anywhere in the world and aims to connect over 2.6 lakh Gram Panchayats, with long-term operation and maintenance built in. Citizen protection architecture comprising Sanchar Saathi, Digital Intelligence Platform, Chakshu and ASTR has also been established at a massive scale, which is the most comprehensive policy support architecture that the telecom sector has received in its history.

Recognising industry contributions, the Minister of State noted that the 5G rollout was completed in roughly 22 months with over 5.1 lakh base stations and more than 400 million subscribers. India has a subscriber base of over 1.22 billion, among the lowest tariffs globally and among the highest per-user data consumption. Sectoral gross revenue grew by 10.7% in FY25 to ₹3.72 lakh crore, while FDI inflows of over ₹2.4 lakh crore up to June 2025 indicate strong foreign capital confidence. 

Dr Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar interacting with dignitaries of TRAI, COAI, industry representatives and other participants at COAI DIGICOM SUMMIT 2026

On manufacturing, the Minister highlighted progress under the PLI Scheme for Telecom and Networking Products with ₹12,195 crore outlay, 42 companies approved, cumulative sales exceeding ₹65,000 crore and exports over ₹12,000 crore. The Telecom Technology Development Fund has supported indigenous R&D with projects worth ₹542 crore.

Addressing spam and digital fraud, the Minister outlined measures including Sanchar Saathi, ASTR disconnecting over 88 lakh fraudulent connections, Chakshu reporting growth and the Digital Intelligence Platform onboarding over 1,200 organisations. The Financial Fraud Risk Indicator has prevented approximately ₹2,300 crore in losses, and a DoT–SEBI MoU was signed recently. He noted the increasing sophistication of threats and called for strengthened KYC, deployment of Calling Name Presentation, improved filtering of spoofed international calls and enhanced intelligence sharing. 

On research and development (R&D), the Minister observed that while the telecom sector generated ₹3.72 lakh crore in FY25, Indian operators spend less than 1% of their revenue on R&D, compared to 15–25% by global majors. He emphasised that the Bharat 6G Vision requires greater industry participation in R&D.

The Minister concluded that India is at an inflection point, with policy support, infrastructure, talent and scale in place, and called for ambition to match the opportunity.

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NJ/ARJ