File photo for representational purposes only.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. File.
| Photo Credit: AP

Elon Musk doubled down on his criticism, amplifying several posts supporting Starlink’s launch in India.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

The Starlink logo is seen in front of the Indian flag (for illustration)
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent meeting with SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has sparked significant interest, particularly given Mr Musk’s ambitions to expand his businesses in India. During Mr Modi’s visit to the U.S. to meet President Donald Trump, the two men met to discuss various issues, including space, mobility, technology, and innovation.

Mr Modi shared details of their meeting on X. This meeting marks another significant interaction between the two, following their previous encounter in New York in 2023. During that meeting, Mr Musk expressed confidence that Tesla would soon enter the Indian market, stating, “I’m confident that Tesla will be in India… as soon as humanly possible”.

Mr Musk’s meeting with Mr Modi was attended by his three young children, while Mr Modi was accompanied by his top advisers, including External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval. Trump later commented on the meeting, assuming Mr Musk’s interest in doing business in India, saying, “I would imagine he met, possibly, because you know he’s running a company”.

According to India’s foreign ministry, Mr Modi and Mr Musk discussed strengthening collaboration between Indian and U.S. entities in innovation, space exploration, artificial intelligence, and sustainable development. They also touched on entrepreneurship and good governance.

Musk’s ambitions for Starlink in India

Mr Musk has long been a fan of Mr Modi and has been eager to introduce his Starlink satellite internet service to the Indian market, per AP.

However, Starlink’s entry into India has faced regulatory challenges, security concerns, and opposition from domestic telecom giants like Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Jio. In November last year, India’s telecoms minister, Jyotiraditya Scindia, stated that Starlink had yet to comply with security norms, and a license for satellite communications services would only be issued after meeting all requirements.

Mr Musk has criticised India’s policy of granting spectrum for satellite services through auctioning, but the Indian government later changed its policy, deciding to assign satellite spectrum instead of auctioning it.

Musk has interests in India’s untapped satellite broadband market

India’s satellite broadband service market is highly competitive, with at least six companies controlling the market, led by Ambani’s Reliance Jio.

About 6,900 active satellites of Mr Musk’s Starlink are orbiting Earth, providing low-latency broadband to some 4.6 million people. However, if Mr Musk wants to enter the Indian market, Starlink’s high pricing could become an issue. India has one of the cheapest rates of mobile data globally and Ambani’s Jio once gave

Despite this, at least 40% of India’s population still lacks access to the internet.

Tesla is waiting to enter India

Tesla has been waiting to enter India as it is the world’s largest automobile market, but because of the high import duties on vehicles, it has faced hurdles. Moreover India’s electric market is still new and made up only about 2% of the total car sales last year. But the government is trying to push that number up to 30% by 2030. Additionally India’s new policy of extending concessional tariffs on fully imported electric vehicles made by foreign carmakers who start local manufacturing is also appealing.

In related news, Tesla is preparing to establish its presence in India, with the company’s visit to India and site selection process underway. Tesla’s entry into the Indian market is expected to bring numerous benefits, including providing Indian consumers with access to advanced electric vehicles, creating job opportunities, and contributing to the growth and development of the Indian electric vehicle industry.
 

New Delhi:

India’s decision to allocate satellite spectrum, rather than auction it, will give consumers more choice, the telecoms minister said on Monday, playing down concern by Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Jio that it could lose out to Elon Musk’s Starlink.

Starlink has long wanted to launch in India and has in recent months clashed with billionaire Ambani’s company over how the country should grant spectrum for satellite services.

Reliance had urged an auction but the Indian government sided with Musk who wanted it to be allocated administratively, in line with global trends. Analysts say an auction, requiring much more investment, would likely deter foreign rivals.

Ambani said he wanted a level playing field and has been worried that his telecom company, which spent $19 billion in airwave auctions, now risks losing broadband customers to Starlink and potentially even data and voice clients later as technology advances.

“My job as telecoms minister is to make sure that you have as many choices as possible,” Jyotiraditya Scindia told Reuters during an interview at his ministry’s office in New Delhi.

Asked if there was merit in Reliance’s concerns, he said, without naming any company: “Technology is never constant”, adding that companies need to keep evolving.

Scindia noted that current satellite technology for communications requires devices to have the sky in their sight, and smartphones cannot use that technology for indoor services that are provided by terrestrial networks.

“The minute you come into this building, you’re done,” he said.

India is one of the world’s biggest telecom markets with 942 million users and stiff competition among Reliance and rivals Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea. Data prices are among the cheapest in the world and internet connectivity has risen rapidly.

Deloitte predicts India’s satellite broadband service market will be worth $1.9 billion by 2030, making it lucrative for players like Starlink, Amazon and Ambani.

Scindia said Starlink and Amazon Kuiper’s applications for a licence to launch satellite broadband services in the country were still under review.

VODAFONE IDEA

Musk has a reputation for disrupting markets. In Kenya, he priced Starlink at $10 per month, versus $120 in the United States, prompting a complaint by Kenya’s Safaricom last year.

A former aviation minister, Scindia is also overseeing many more telecom initiatives for Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

India’s government owns a stake in Vodafone Idea, and the company in November disclosed it still had around $24 billion in dues owed to the government.

Scindia repeatedly declined to answer in the interview if there were any plans for relief on the outstanding dues.

The Indian government is, however, working towards reviving state-run telecom player, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), which lost market share amid fierce competition over the years, he said.

BSNL has 99 million users but is being supported with expanded offerings of 4G services.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Starlink, SpaceX’s satellite network designed to deliver affordable internet to remote areas, may not be as secure as believed. A group of renowned Chinese scientists recently simulated a space mission aimed at targeting the massive satellite constellation, according to the South China Morning Post.

Results from the computer simulation showed that China could effectively approach nearly 1,400 Starlink satellites within 12 hours using just 99 Chinese satellites. These could be equipped with lasers, microwaves, and other devices to conduct reconnaissance, tracking, or other operations.

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“The potential military application value of the Starlink megaconstellation has been highlighted in the Russia-Ukraine conflict. In recent years, the militarisation of space has intensified, posing a significant threat to China’s space security. It is particularly important to track and monitor its operational status,” wrote the project team led by Wu Yunhua, director of the aerospace control department at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Their peer-reviewed paper was published on January 3 in the Chinese academic journal Systems Engineering and Electronics.

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According to SCMP, SpaceX, founded by Elon Musk, has launched more than 6,700 Starlink satellites and is expected to increase that number into the tens of thousands in the coming years.

According to Space.com, Starlink satellites have a lifespan of approximately five years, and SpaceX eventually hopes to have as many as 42,000 satellites in this so-called megaconstellation.

New Delhi:

In a first, a Starlink dish and router have been seized allegedly from a Meitei insurgent group in Manipur, raising concerns over the use of the internet by insurgents to coordinate attacks and communicate tactical information even during times of internet blackout, sources have said.

Finding a Starlink device in India in the hands of insurgents, however, does not mean it is usable in India, sources said.

Starlink, owned by billionaire Elon Musk’s aerospace company SpaceX, is the world’s first and largest satellite constellation using a low Earth orbit to deliver broadband internet anywhere in the world where the service is licenced to operate.

Starlink is not available in India, though the American company has applied for regulatory clearance.

Elon Musk in a post on X said Starlink doesn’t operate in India. “This is false. Starlink satellite beams are turned off over India,” he said.

This is false. Starlink satellite beams are turned off over India.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 17, 2024

A joint team of the security forces found the Starlink dish and router along with an MA4 assault rifle, grenades and bullets from Imphal East district’s Khunou on December 13.

The police called the device “internet satellite antenna and internet satellite router”.

Search operations and area domination were conducted by security forces in the fringe and vulnerable areas of hill and valley districts. During the search operations, the following items were recovered:
i. 01 (one) no. of MA4 Assault Rifle, 01 (one) no. of 12 Bore Single Barrel… pic.twitter.com/Ls4lwx9Opu

— Manipur Police (@manipur_police) December 13, 2024

The Indian Army’s Spear Corps in a post on X also posted visuals of a joint operation that the Assam Rifles and the Manipur Police carried out in the hill and valley regions of Churachandpur, Chandel, Imphal East, and Kangpokpi.

One of the visuals shows a white, rectangular dish and a router with the Starlink logo on it. The acronyms “RPF/PLA” are visible on the router in this photo.

This photo taken from a closer angle is of the same Starlink device that the security forces found on December 13, sources told NDTV, adding the security forces handed over the device to the police. 

“Acting on specific intelligence, troops of the Indian Army and Assam Rifles formations under Spear Corps carried out joint search operations in the hill and valley regions in the districts of Churachandpur, Chandel, Imphal East and Kangpokpi in Manipur, in close coordination with Manipur Police and other security forces and recovered 29 weapons comprising of snipers, automatic weapons, rifles, pistols, country made mortars, single barrel rifles, grenades, ammunition and war like stores,” the Spear Corps said in a post on X.

Acting on specific intelligence, troops of #IndianArmy and #AssamRifles formations under #SpearCorps carried out joint search operations in the hill and valley regions in the districts of Churachandpur, Chandel, Imphal East and Kagpokpi in #Manipur, in close coordination with… pic.twitter.com/kxy7ec5YAE

— SpearCorps.IndianArmy (@Spearcorps) December 16, 2024

The Revolutionary People’s Front (RPF) is the political arm of the Meitei insurgent group People’s Liberation Army (PLA), which is one of the eight Meitei secessionist groups listed as banned organisations by the Union Home Ministry.

Starlink had launched the 12 by 19-inch rectangular dish in November 2021, in addition to its existing circular dish. The dimensions of the device with the Starlink logo in the visuals released by the security forces seem to match. The new generation dish is 20 by 12-inch.

Starlink has no licence to operate in neighbouring Myanmar, too.

However, the Myanmar Internet Project – a collective run since 2022 by researchers to track developments in the Myanmar digital space – has estimated some 3,000 Starlink connections across the country, used by both ethnic insurgents fighting the junta and the common people living in remote areas.

The Meitei insurgent group PLA has been operating in areas in Myanmar which are near the border with India.

The police declined to give more specific details about the “internet satellite antenna and internet satellite router”. Sources said investigation is at an early stage.

Billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance has asked the telecom regulator to review the potential reach of Elon Musk’s Starlink and Amazon’s Kuiper before awarding satellite spectrum amid concerns local players could suffer, a letter showed on Friday.

Reliance’s letter, which is not public, is Mr Ambani’s last-ditch effort in an ongoing face-off with Mr Musk over how India should grant spectrum for satellite services. While Reliance has called for an auction, India has sided with Mr Musk who – in line with global trends – wanted an administrative allocation.

In the letter, reviewed by Reuters, Reliance said it carried about 15 billion gigabyte of data every month in India after spending about $23 billion on spectrum auctions over the years, but Starlink would target the same customers with a potential capacity of nearly 18 billion gigabyte of data via its satellites with a likely much lower outlay.

Experts say auctions tend to mean higher initial investments which could have deterred foreign players in favour of Reliance.

“The authority should critically examine the capacities created by these mega … constellations such as Starlink and Kuiper,” the letter dated November 15 said.

A senior government source at the telecom regulator said all feedback being received would be reviewed before making final recommendations, tentatively before the year end. Starlink, Amazon and Reliance did not respond.

Starlink is seeking security clearance for a licence to offer satellite broadband services in India and will get a permit if it satisfies all conditions, Telecom Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said this week.

Mr Ambani once gave data for free on his mobile plans, and Mr Musk has adopted similarly aggressive tactics. In Kenya, Mr Musk priced Starlink at $10 per month, versus $120 in the US, unsettling local telecom players.

Mr Ambani, Asia’s richest man, has more than 479 million Indian telecom users, making Reliance Jio the No. 1 player. Mr Musk’s Starlink, a unit of SpaceX, has 6,400 active satellites orbiting Earth providing low-latency broadband to four million customers.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance has asked the telecom regulator to review the potential reach of Elon Musk’s Starlink and Amazon’s Kuiper before awarding satellite spectrum amid concerns local players could suffer, a letter showed on Friday.

Reliance’s letter, which is not public, is Mr Ambani’s last-ditch effort in an ongoing face-off with Mr Musk over how India should grant spectrum for satellite services. While Reliance has called for an auction, India has sided with Mr Musk who – in line with global trends – wanted an administrative allocation.

In the letter, reviewed by Reuters, Reliance said it carried about 15 billion gigabyte of data every month in India after spending about $23 billion on spectrum auctions over the years, but Starlink would target the same customers with a potential capacity of nearly 18 billion gigabyte of data via its satellites with a likely much lower outlay.

Experts say auctions tend to mean higher initial investments which could have deterred foreign players in favour of Reliance.

“The authority should critically examine the capacities created by these mega … constellations such as Starlink and Kuiper,” the letter dated November 15 said.

A senior government source at the telecom regulator said all feedback being received would be reviewed before making final recommendations, tentatively before the year end. Starlink, Amazon and Reliance did not respond.

Starlink is seeking security clearance for a licence to offer satellite broadband services in India and will get a permit if it satisfies all conditions, Telecom Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said this week.

Mr Ambani once gave data for free on his mobile plans, and Mr Musk has adopted similarly aggressive tactics. In Kenya, Mr Musk priced Starlink at $10 per month, versus $120 in the US, unsettling local telecom players.

Mr Ambani, Asia’s richest man, has more than 479 million Indian telecom users, making Reliance Jio the No. 1 player. Mr Musk’s Starlink, a unit of SpaceX, has 6,400 active satellites orbiting Earth providing low-latency broadband to four million customers.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)