Even although 5G is but to be launched in India, the government has currently began preparing for 6G technologies. The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) is organising a webinar on February 24 to analyse the technical needs and challenges to introduce 6G in the nation.
The webinar, to be addressed by senior DoT officials — which includes the member (technologies), the member (services), an IIT Madras professor, and a senior Reliance Jio official — will deliberate on standardisation of 6G, probable use situations, possibilities and challenges in the present ecosystem, and strategising for 6G in India.
The DoT is attempting to outline an all round framework of 6G and to provide directional guidance for the subsequent 6G study.
As per a note shared by the division, with 5G network commercially deployed in different components of the globe, more and more researchers and organisations have began working on the next generation of mobile communication method, that is 6G. “This webinar will explore the 6G vision with embedded four keywords: intelligent connectivity, deep connectivity, holographic connectivity and ubiquitous connectivity and various international initiatives to realise the vision,” the DoT mentioned.
Even in the case of 5G, the government had set up a higher-level forum in 2017 beneath the chairmanship of Telecom Secretary, with Ministry of Electronics and IT (Meity) Secretary and Department of Science and Technology Secretary as co-chairs. The forum also had members from the academia and business and submitted its report in August 2018. The suggestions are nevertheless to be implemented.
The standing committee on information and facts technologies, chaired by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, has pulled up DoT for not carrying out enough preparatory work to launch 5G services in India. The committee mentioned at a time when quite a few nations are swiftly moving towards 5G technologies, India is probably to witness its deployment only by the finish of 2021 or early 2022, that as well partially.
Many nations began to roll out 5G commercially in 2019, and globally there are 118 operators in 59 nations that have deployed the technologies. Currently, the 5G network covers about 7% of the globe population and it is anticipated that by 2025, it will cover 20% of the world’s population. Countries exactly where 5G has been introduced involve USA, Canada, UK, European Union nations, China, Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Australia, New Zealand, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain.
“So, it is very likely that after missing the 2G, 3G, and 4G bus, India is going to miss on 5G opportunities, unless time-bound action is taken in core areas where governmental intervention is required. It is disappointing to note that the department has hardly learnt from the past delays…,” the committee mentioned.
After getting pulled up by the panel, the DoT has began to move towards conducting 5G trials, dates for which are anticipated to be announced quickly.