About ₹500 cr approved till date under TTDF for 120 tech projects: MoS Telecom

Mint

25-06-2025

New Delhi, Jun 25 (PTI) The government has approved around ₹ 500 crore till date under Telecom Technology Development Fund to 120 projects in areas of 5G, 6G, chipsets and quantum technology, Union Minister Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar said on Wednesday.
The minister shared the information about his review meeting of the TTDF on his social media account.
"TTDF is our flagship fund to support R&D and innovation in telecom technologies. Since launch, ₹ 499.6 Cr approved for 120 projects in 5G, 6G, chipsets & quantum tech," Pemmasani said on social media platform X.
Launched on October 1, 2022 and implemented by Digital Bharat Nidhi (DBN), TTDF supports cutting-edge research in areas such as 6G, quantum communication, secure chipsets, and intelligent rural connectivity.
Since inception, the scheme has received over 1,340 proposals, with 120 R&D projects approved and ₹ 499.6 crore sanctioned, of which ₹ 187 crore has already been disbursed.
DoT sources, who were aware of the developments at the meeting, shared that the minister emphasised the need for measurable outcomes from public investments in R&D and suggested a series of reforms to strengthen TTDF's implementation framework.
"He highlighted that projects supported under TTDF should be closely aligned with real-world objectives, backed by clear monitoring mechanisms. To expedite decision-making, he suggested that the structure of evaluation committees may be streamlined and timelines clearly defined," a source said.
He also encouraged greater involvement of reputed private equity professionals and domain experts to enrich the assessment process and improve sectoral relevance, the source added.
The review came shortly after the TTDF Symposium 2025, held at IIT Madras Research Park from June 19-21, where 112 funded projects were evaluated across 12 technology verticals by over 40 expert mentors.
Recognising the importance of sustained oversight, Pemmasani is learnt to have proposed monthly reviews of TTDF's progress at his level to enable timely feedback and course correction.
"In a bid to boost participation from emerging enterprises, he suggested simplifying the scheme guidelines to reduce entry barriers for startups and MSMEs. Structural streamlining of existing committees and feedback mechanisms were also recommended to ensure improved execution and support," an official source said.