Elon Musk’s satellite internet company, Starlink, is getting closer to launching in India. The company has cleared most regulatory and licensing hurdles and now awaits final approval to begin operations.
Starlink Close to Launch, Says IN-SPACe Chief
Pawan Goenka, the Chairman of India’s space agency IN-SPACe (Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre), confirmed that Starlink is progressing well. However, some technical and procedural work still remains.
“Even after authorisation, it will take a few months for the service to become operational,” Goenka told NDTV. He shared this update after a meeting with Gwynne Shotwell, the President and COO of SpaceX.
Goenka added that the final approvals should be granted in the coming days.
Starlink’s Four-Year Wait Nears an End
SpaceX has been trying to enter India’s massive telecom market since 2021. With almost 100 crore (1 billion) users, India is one of the largest digital markets in the world.
Earlier this month, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) gave its green light to Starlink. This marked a major step forward after nearly four years of discussions and delays.
Sources from DoT told NDTV that Starlink may begin offering services in India with a bandwidth capacity of 600 to 700 Gbps.
Currently, Starlink provides internet in over 100 countries, including many in Asia. These include Mongolia, Japan, the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Jordan, Yemen, Azerbaijan, Bhutan, and Bangladesh.
X Faces Legal Trouble in Indian Court
While Starlink moves forward, Elon Musk’s other company, X (formerly Twitter), is facing legal trouble in India. The issue involves a courtroom battle over content takedown orders from the Indian government.
During a hearing on Tuesday, X’s lawyer, KG Raghavan, criticized the process. He said that every government official had the power to request content removals. “Every ‘Tom, Dick, and Harry’ government official had been authorised to issue content takedown orders,” he told the court.
His statement sparked a strong reaction from the Indian government’s lawyer. The hearing is part of X’s legal challenge against what it calls a “censorship portal”—a government-run website that allows officials to request content removal.
The Indian government, however, claims the website is meant only to notify companies quickly about their legal duties.
As an example, Raghavan mentioned a notice X received from the railways department, demanding the removal of a video that showed a car driving on a railway track. He said, “That was news, but the government found it unlawful.”
