Centre rejects Musk's charge that Starlink is being blocked, says one rule for all

A new controversy has arisen in India over the launch of satellite internet services and the rules for the satellite communication sector. Elon Musk, head of SpaceX and the world's richest businessman, had made direct allegations about efforts to launch Starlink in India. The Union government's Ministry of Communications has issued an official statement rejecting the allegations outright and reiterating that India's policy is the same for everyone.

Replying to a user's post on the social media platform X, Musk had commented on India's satellite internet market. The discussion was about how badly Starlink is needed to bring fast internet to rural and remote areas. Musk said: "Some extremely powerful businessmen in India are putting obstacles in Starlink's path to protect their commercial monopoly." The remark caused a stir in India's telecom sector and on social media.

The ministry issued its statement soon after Musk's allegations. "India's satellite communication policies and regulatory framework are completely fair, transparent and non-discriminatory," the ministry said. The statement also said the rumours and allegations circulating on social media are baseless and rest on a misunderstanding.

The government said that three Global Mobile Personal Communications by Satellite (GMPCS) licences are currently issued in India for services based on Non-Geostationary Satellite Orbit. These include Starlink along with other major companies. All three licence holders are currently at the same stage of the regulatory process. The government's position is that no one has been given special concessions and no one's path has been unduly obstructed.

The government said it is highly vigilant about satellite internet services and that there will be no compromise on national security or the data security of users. Under the licence conditions, the mandatory security assessment process for all three companies is under way. Under the government's rules, the moment a company successfully meets all the criteria and conditions of the security assessment, it will move to the next stage of spectrum allocation. The government said, therefore, there is no question of holding back one company or favouring another.

There is currently intense competition between global and domestic companies to offer satellite internet services in India. Laying fibre optic cable or putting up mobile towers is difficult in hilly, remote and border areas, and satellite broadband could bring a revolution there. However, India's sovereignty, cyber security and the protection of citizens' data are the government's first priority. The statement has made it clear that all companies will have to start services only by following Indian rules.