DoT Floats Draft National Telecom Policy 2025 for Public Opinion
Mission 2030 targets big growth in jobs, investments, and 5G coverage across India.
New Delhi: The government has started its process for “Mission 2030” in the telecom sector as the department of telecom (DoT) on Thursday floated the draft National Telecom Policy 2025 (NTP-25) for public opinion, setting an ambitious framework to transform the country into a global telecom technology leader in the next five years. The NTP-25, however, aims to attract more than Rs 1 lakh crore annual investments and create 10-lakh new jobs in the sector by 2030, according to the DoT’s draft document.
The DoT has outlined six strategic missions to achieve its objectives that include universal and meaningful connectivity, innovation, domestic manufacturing, secure and trusted telecom network, ease of living and ease of doing business, and sustainable telecommunications in the country. The policy, however, aims to achieve universal-4G coverage, 90 percent population coverage with 5G and fixed broadband in 100 million homes in the sector by 2030. The department has invited public comments on the policy within 21 days from the date the circular was issued.
As per the document, the draft policy aims to position India among the top 10 global hubs for innovation and research in emerging technologies, such as 5G and 6G, AI, IoT, and quantum communications. Structured around six core missions, the NTP-25 envisions India not only as the world’s largest consumer of telecom services but also as a leading exporter of indigenous telecom technology under the “Bharat – a telecom product nation banner.
The policy will also aim to make India a trusted global provider of telecom products, services and solutions. It also targets to double the export of telecom products and services, the number of telecommunications startups and the sectoral R&D spending on emerging telecom technologies. Besides, it proposes establishing 10 centres of excellence and backing 500 telecom-tech start-ups and MSMEs. An innovation-focused Section 8 company will also be created.
“The NTP-25 would position India to become the manufacturer of choice of telecom products for the world with a comprehensive roadmap for investment in research, upskilling of the workforce, infrastructure modernisation, and effective spectrum management to support in a sustainable manner for emerging use cases across smart cities, industry 4.0, rural broadband, emergency response, and digital governance,” the draft said.
