New Delhi: Telecom rivals Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel have both announced deals with Elon Musk’s SpaceX to bring Starlink’s internet services to India.
Both deals are conditional upon Starlink obtaining government authorisation to begin operations in the country.
While Jio will offer Starlink equipment in its retail outlets and online stores, it will also provide installation support for the devices.
Jio is the biggest telecom provider in India. Starlink’s high speed internet will, the company claims, complement JioAirFiber and JioFiber to give affordable and quick services to “the most challenging of locations.”
Last year, Reliance has contested the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s decision to allocate spectrum for home satellite broadband rather than manage it through auctions. Musk’s Starlink was thought to be a major beneficiary of this move.
Airtel, which advertised its deal as the “first agreement to be signed in India,” said it will explore offering Starlink equipment in Airtel’s retail stores, Starlink services via Airtel to business customers, along with “opportunities to connect communities, schools, and health centres, among many others, in even the most rural parts of India.”
SpaceX will have the option to utilise and benefit from Airtel’s ground network infrastructure and other capabilities in India, it said.
The announcements have raised questions about the absence of parliamentary or public debate on what these deals would mean for national security and other aspects of Indian telecommunications. Navita Srikant, an international expert on forensic auditing and anti-corruption issues, has written on X that it also invites concern on “how has India ruled out the threat to critical infrastructure by foreign corporations with capability and access to foreign intelligence institutions and the potential to harm India’s interests.”
In addition, it also dent’s India’s self-reliance dreams, Srikant observed.
