2 weeks Ago By Chaitanya Kohli
Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal met a Starlink delegation in the national capital on April 16, as per an NDTV report.Goyal shared a post about the meeting on X (formerly Twitter), saying: “Discussions covered Starlink’s cutting-edge technology platform, their existing partnerships, & future investment plans in India.”Met a delegation from @Starlink, comprising of Vice President Chad Gibbs & Senior Director, Ryan Goodnight.
Discussions covered Starlink's cutting-edge technology platform, their existing partnerships & future investment plans in India. pic.twitter.
com/mX66Y6Ltsn— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) April 16, 2025The Elon Musk-led company’s delegation featured Vice President Chad Gibbs and Senior Director Ryan Goodnight, whose aim in visiting India was to brief Goyal and the Telecom Ministry about their plans to conduct operations in the country.The meeting also reportedly featured senior officials from the Ministry of Commerce, as well as key people from the Telecom Department.A Security-Related Stumbling Block for Starlink in India.
The satellite communications company attempted to pacify the Central Government’s concerns around security while briefing officials about its investment plans in India.Starlink has lobbied the Centre for the past two to three years to obtain an Indian licence in order to launch satellite communication services in the country. However, it has been unsuccessful due to security-related stumbling blocks.
And the Centre is not entirely mistaken in having security apprehensions about Starlink. For instance, the Indian Army recovered a purported Starlink device along with weapons and ammunition during search and rescue operations in Manipur in December last year.This is false.
Starlink satellite beams are turned off over India.— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 17, 2024On the other hand, Musk—in a social media post—said that terrorists using Starlink devices to operate in India was a false narrative. He claimed that the company’s satellite beams were turned off over the country.
Ultimately, the Centre began a probe into the matter against the satellite communications giant.In a separate incident, Starlink reportedly helped transport 6,000 kilograms of meth worth $4.25 billion in a drug smuggling operation from Myanmar to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in India.
Why It MattersStarlink executives’ India visit comes at a time when the company is seeking to comprehend market dynamics in the country, evaluate the regulatory plain it might have to navigate, and, in turn, come up with a future-focused strategy.For context, Starlink might end up paying a spectrum usage charge (SUC) for conducting operations in India. Notably, this expense was abolished for other major players in the Indian telecom space, such as Airtel, Reliance Jio, and Vodafone Idea.
Also worth noting is the fact that Musk’s company has stitched up agreements with both Airtel and Reliance Jio to offer satellite broadband internet to Indian consumers.Therefore, obtaining an Indian licence at the earliest becomes a top priority for Musk & Co. in order to gain a significant foothold in the Indian satellite communications sector.
Also Read:Jio and Airtel tie up with Starlink for satellite internet connectivityStarlink Likely To Pay Spectrum Tax In India: What It Means for Satellite InternetOpinion: On Starlink’s entry into India, satcom spectrum and auctionsThe post Starlink Officials Meet Piyush Goyal to Discuss India Expansion appeared first on MEDIANAMA..
