Lok Sabha Question No. 865 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2024-02-07
Subject: 6G Technology
Ministry: COMMUNICATIONS
Asked by: Chandra Prakash Joshi, Dileshwar Kamait

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 865 TO BE ANSWERED ON 7 TH  FEBRUARY, 2024

## 6G Technology

## 865. SHRI CHANDRA PRAKASH JOSHI: SHRI DILESHWAR KAMAIT:

Will the Minister of COMMUNICATIONS be pleased to state:

- (a) the details of the measures taken by the Government to establish itself as a leading contributor to the development and manufacturing of 6G technology by 2030;
- (b) whether initiative was taken by the Government for the expansion and timely deployment of 5G network facilities in the country;
- (c) the details of the current status of 5G cell tower fiberization, State/UT-wise;
- (d) the progress made so far in the mapping of telecom assets on the PM Gati Shakti-National Master Plan (NMP) platform; and
- (e) the details of districts or areas in the country where 3G and 4G services are not available at present including the district and State/UT-wise?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR COMMUNICATIONS (SHRI DEVUSINH CHAUHAN)

- (a) Government has released Bharat 6G Vision Document with the following objectives:
- i. Design, develop and deploy 6G network to provide ubiquitous, intelligent and secure connectivity for high quality living experience.
- ii. Affordability,  Sustainability  and  Ubiquity  which  align  with  the  national  Vision  of Atmanirbhar Bharat that seeks to empower every Indian to become self- reliant.

In order to take a lead in 6G technology, the Government has constituted Bharat 6G Mission and Apex Council to lay down the Phase-wise objectives of 6G, suggest the research and innovation pathways to be explored and review the progress of implementation of Bharat 6G Vision from time to time. Further, Bharat 6G Alliance (B6GA), an alliance of domestic industry, academia, national research  institutions  and  standards  organizations  has  been  launched  to  enable  India  to  become  a leading  global  supplier  of  IP,  products  and  solutions.  B6GA  has  also  signed  Memorandum  of Understanding with NextG Alliance of USA to explore collaboration opportunities on 6G wireless technologies. The Government has also taken following steps to take a lead in development of 5G/ 6G technology by 2030:

- i. Government has launched Telecom Technology Development Fund (TTDF) scheme with 5% of annual collections from Universal Service Obligation Fund for funding research & development of technologies, products, and services. Under TTDF, two proposals for test beds  have  been  approved,  viz.  6G  THz  Testbed  through  consortium  of  Society  for Applied Microwave Electronics Engineering and Research (SAMEER), IIT Madras, IIT Guwahati and IIT Patna; Advance Optical Communication Test Bed with Consortium Members as IIT Madras, IIT Delhi and other academic institutions.

- ii. Government has also invited proposals from academia/industry(consortium-based), and other bodies engaged in R&D for setting up of 'Accelerated Research Lab on 6G' and contribute to the future technologies.
- iii. Government has sanctioned 100 5G and beyond labs at academic institutions across India. This  initiative  is  also  a  pivotal  step  for  building  a  6G  -  ready  academic  and  start-up ecosystem in the country.
- iv. India has contributed in International Telecommunications Union International Mobile Technology  (IMT)  2030  framework,  also  called  6G  by  industry  for  inclusion  of 'Ubiquitous  Connectivity'  as  one  of  the  six  usage  scenarios  of  6G  and  coverage, interoperability and sustainability as capabilities of 6G technology.

(b) 5G services  were  launched  in  India  on  1 st   October  2022.  Government  has  taken  several initiatives such as making available adequate spectrum, launching PM Gati Shakti Sanchar Portal, reforming and simplifying Standing Advisory Committee on Radio Frequency Allocations (SACFA) clearance procedure, amending the Right of Way (RoW) rules to expedite permissions etc. Within a span of 14 months, more than 4.15 Lakh 5G sites are providing connectivity across 742 districts. This is the fastest roll-out of 5G anywhere in the world.

(c) to (e) 5G BTS are provided with fibre/microwave backhaul as per suitability of the site. As on date, the following Telecom assets have been mapped on PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan platform:

- i. 12  lakh  RKM  (Route  Kilometers)  Optical  Fiber  Cable  (OFC)  from  Public  Sector Undertakings (PSUs) and 21,000 km of State OFC,
- ii. 7.69 lakh mobile towers having 27.45 lakh BTSs,
- iii. 1.33 lakh PM-WANI Wi-Fi hotspots,
- iv. 19,488 Proposed Mobile Towers of 4G saturation project,
- v. 3,795 Mobile towers (planned/radiating) of various Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) projects and 5 HIP (High Impact Projects).

Telecom connectivity in India has improved significantly in last 10 years, outlined as follows:

|                                           | May 2014      | Dec 2023     |
|-------------------------------------------|---------------|--------------|
| Number of Base Transceiver stations       | 6.49 Lakh     | 28 Lakh      |
| Optical fiber laid                        | 10.62 Lakh Km | 39 Lakh Km   |
| Internet users                            | 25.15 Cr      | 88.12 Cr     |
| Cost of data                              | Rs. 269/ Gb   | Rs. 9.94/ Gb |
| Median internet speed                     | 1.3 Mbps      | 75.8 Mbps    |
| Gram Panchayats connected under BharatNet | 58            | 2.1 Lakh     |

To further improve telecom connectivity in the country, Government is implementing various schemes.

-  A total  of  41,160 mobile  towers have  been  sanctioned with an outlay of Rs. 41,331 Cr to provide 4G connectivity to about 55 thousand villages.
-  Scope  of  BharatNet  program  has  been  expanded  to  connect  all  inhabited  villages with  an outlay of 1.88 Lakh Cr.

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