By Bl New Delhi
Copyright thehindubusinessline
Minister of Communications, and Development of North Eastern Region Jyotiraditya Scindia on Thursday met with chief executives of telecom service providers (TSPs) and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) like Reliance Jio’s Akash Ambani and Vodafone-Idea’s Abhijit Kishore. The meeting saw the attendees discuss issues flagged by the companies, as well as preparations for the upcoming India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2025, to be held on October 8-11.
The meeting had three key agendas — review of preparations for IMC 2025, discussion on issues flagged by TSPs and OEMs, and an assessment of the status of Telecom Manufacturing Zone (TMZ) at Gwalior and the Telecom Innovation, Research and Training Centre at Jabalpur, stated the Ministry of Communications (MoC).
“Focused discussions on the upcoming India Mobile Congress 2025 and the progress of Telecom Manufacturing Zone (TMZ) in Madhya Pradesh. Also discussed advancing indigenous solutions in line with PM @narendramodi ji’s thrust on Swadeshi and Mission Aatmanirbhar Bharat, and accelerating skill development to further power India’s telecom growth,” Scindia posted on X after the meeting.
Scindia emphasised that the government remains committed to bridging the digital divide, fostering innovation, and strengthening indigenous telecom manufacturing.
He directed both TSPs and OEMs to work in close coordination with the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) to provide actionable feedback within stipulated timelines. He also stressed that upcoming initiatives such as IMC 2025, the TMZ in Gwalior and the Innovation Centre at Jabalpur will play a pivotal role in making India a global hub for telecom technology, services, and manufacturing.
During the deliberations, he also noted that most pending issues raised earlier by TSPs had been resolved, particularly relating to cyber security, spam control, standards and technology interoperability.
Three critical items — digital divide, spectrum authorisation, and business viability of fixed-line services remained under consideration, with stakeholders expected to provide responses to draft rules by October 6, 2025, it said, adding that matters relating to telemarketer regulations, license fee, and electricity power requirements are also under examination under the upcoming Telecom Policy framework.
On the OEM front, the Minister recorded closure of issues concerning indigenous manufacturing, testing and certification timelines, and ease of doing business measures.
“Four items remain pending, including cost structure parity with global peers, development of a partial-to-full domestic manufacturing ecosystem for import substitution, promotion of design-led manufacturing, and resolution of single-source component procurement challenges. Responses and policy inputs on these issues are expected by October 6, 2025,” MoC added.
Published on September 25, 2025
