2 days ago
Satellite in the backpack: Indian armed forces look to partner with satcom firms
New Delhi: India is looking to give its defence forces a competitive edge in modern warfare and security through state-of-the-art satellite communications (satcom) in partnership with the private sector, four people with direct knowledge of the matter said.
The move will also open up new business vistas for satcom providers, which are yet to commence operations in the country. The department of telecommunications (DoT) is expected to conduct spectrum allocation sometime soon.
Multiple trials have been conducted by the Indian Army, Air Force and Navy with private satcom providers such as OneWeb and Jio-SES over the past two years, the people cited above said.
Trials with OneWeb, which is backed by Airtel's parent firm Bharti Enterprises, have offered low-latency, satellite-based network connectivity with military-grade encryption on multiple occasions. Jio-SES, the second Indian satcom service provider with a licence from the DoT, has also held more than two defence-sector trials, two of the people cited above said.
The trials were conducted during the India-Vietnam joint military exercise in November last year, and Operation Brahma in Myanmar in April, among other occasions. The idea behind the trials is to see how old satellite communications standards can be overhauled for the armed forces, these people added.
The Centre's move would see the gradual replacement of older, large very small aperture terminal (VSAT) receivers, which connect with Indian Space Research Organisation's (Isro's) geosynchronous earth orbit (Geo) satellites. Such receivers are typically bulky and need specialized transport, and their connectivity is also slow.
OneWeb and Jio-SES offer portable satcom terminals that are small enough to come in a backpack. They also deliver faster network connectivity that is critical for remote drones and other tech-heavy defence equipment in distant areas, by using low-earth orbit (Leo) satellites.
India is also exploring other global players. One of the people mentioned above – a senior government official speaking on condition of not being named – said initial talks have been held with Elon Musk-owned Starlink on how it can offer a massive satellite network for the defence forces while maintaining the necessary security protocols and silos that the technology will require.
Notably, Starlink has not installed its gateways and equipment in the country so far, and is yet to conduct network trials and acquire security clearance from New Delhi.
Emails sent to the DoT, ministry of defence, Airtel, Jio and Starlink did not receive responses until press time.
New business opportunity
'Defence, maritime and border security will be key focus segments for enterprise satellite communication providers in India," said Shivaji Chatterjee, chief executive and managing director of Hughes Communications India, which is a partner to Bharti's OneWeb that offers both Geo and Leo satellite services.
'Multiple trials have already taken place to evaluate the potential of some of our latest offerings, such as OneWeb, in these strategic sectors," Chatterjee added. 'Other upcoming Leo offerings are also considered promising for rural broadband because of their extensive capacity enabled by large satellite constellations."
Anil Kumar Bhatt, director general of space industry body, Indian Space Association (ISpA), said satcom services for Indian defence forces have so far been used as a backup to terrestrial and radio communications, even in remote terrain.
'Now, new-age infrastructure and modernization mean that India's defence forces need low-latency Leo satellite networks to make the most of cutting-edge technologies—and also to support operations far beyond Indian borders," Bhatt said.
A second senior official, also speaking on condition of anonymity, said the government sees these satcom services as a way to enhance connectivity in the country. 'Even as there are use cases for the government and defence-related activities, these companies will be allowed to serve those sectors only after ensuring that national security norms are not compromised," this official said.
One of the officials cited above added that a use case that has been explored includes 'providing small, durable and lightweight user terminals that can be carried by army personnel or installed on crewed and uncrewed vehicles—thus helping support communication, command, surveillance, and intelligence needs in fixed locations and on the move".
In September 2023, a report by The Times of India said that India's defence forces had pilot-tested the use of suitcase-borne satcom terminals as part of modernized defence-grade satcom networks.
Chaitanya Giri, space fellow at global think-tank Observer Research Foundation, said that Starlink is 'unlikely to get any imminent defence contract owing to the global geopolitics and the company catering to nations with which India might not be on the best of terms".
While agreeing that India needs to overhaul and modernise satcom in defence arms, Giri said, 'But to do so, geostationary satellites that offer huge bandwidth of data and can be indigenized and concentrated on a solitary area could offer far greater security and faster network connectivity for defence applications. Companies would be encouraged if defence contracts included indigenization contracts—which would be critical for both ground-station and satellite infrastructure involved in defence."
ISpA's Bhatt, a retired military secretary and lieutenant general of the Indian Army, further added that India will need to evaluate if the defence forces need their own Leo satellite constellation made indigenously, or acquire bandwidth from existing operators. 'Based on this, they would then take measures to make the satcom networks more secure," he said.
Globally, too, instances of satcom service revamp are increasing. This June, Eutelsat, the global holding firm of Bharti's OneWeb, signed a 10-year agreement with France's ministry of the armed forces. The deal, worth up to €1 billion, sought to integrate military and civilian satellite resources for Europe to have secure space communications.
Eutelsat also has a deal with the UK to provide high-speed, low-latency connectivity for the country's embassies, high commissions and consulates—as well as broader UK government activities globally.
