Union Information Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnav on Wednesday posted a welcome message for Starlink on social media, but after about an hour he also deleted this post on social media. Union Information and Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav wrote in the post on X, “Welcome to Starlink, India! It will be very useful for railway projects in remote areas.”
In fact, India’s largest telecom operator and internet provider Airtel and Jio have signed agreements with Starlinks to offer satellite-based broadband internet services but it is yet to be approved by the central government. On Tuesday, Airtel announced that it signed an agreement with Allen Musk’s spacex to bring Starlink services to India, as well as said it would give a chance to add communities, schools, health centers and other institutions in the most remote rural areas of India.
Gopal Vitthal, managing director and vice chairman of Bharatiya Airtel Limited, said, “Working with SpaceX is an important step to provide Starlink services to Airtel’s customers in India and it reflects our commitment to our customers”. Sunil Bharti Mittal, founder and president of Bharti Enterprises, said, “Like 4G, 5G and 6G in future, we will now have another technology, ie SAT-G.”
At the same time, Reliance Group’s digital services company Jio Platforms Limited also announced its deal with Starlink on Wednesday. Reliance Jio Group CEO Matthew Oman said, “Our cooperation with SpaceX to bring Starlink into India strengthens our commitment and is a change in the direction of broadband connectivity for all without any hassle.”
He said, “By bringing Starlink into Jio’s broadband ecosystem, we are expanding our reach and increasing the credibility and reach of high-speed broadband in this AI-operated era, which is strengthening communities and businesses across the country.” Space X President and Chief Operating Officer Gwne Shotwell said that the company is waiting for approval from the Government of India.
