{"id":676656,"date":"2026-11-06T10:50:12","date_gmt":"2026-11-06T10:50:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/676656\/"},"modified":"2026-11-06T10:50:12","modified_gmt":"2026-11-06T10:50:12","slug":"india-requires-2-5-3-ghz-spectrum-for-future-5g-advanced-and-6g-technologies-gsma-ettelecom","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/676656\/","title":{"rendered":"India Requires 2.5-3 GHz Spectrum for Future 5G-Advanced and 6G Technologies: GSMA, ETTelecom"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"\/NEW DELHI: India will need 2.5-3 gigahertz (GHz) of total mobile spectrum as it heads to 5G-Advanced and sixth-generation (6G) technologies, said a top global executive at GSMA<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cGiven the scale of India, I think as we look to the future, it is going to need to make sure it has probably even more spectrum than some other markets,\u201d John Giusti, chief regulatory officer at GSMA, told ETTelecom in an interview. \u201cI estimate India may need in the range of 2.5-3 GHz total of mobile spectrum.\u201d<\/p>\n

India presently has a total of 4.16 GHz of spectrum for IMT or mobile services across multiple spectrum bands, including 600 MHz. 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz, 2500 MHz, 3300 MHz, and 26 GHz, according to the Ministry of Communications.<\/p>\n

Based on the requirements of the next-generation networks, the ministry sees sub-1 GHz, mid-band (1 GHz to 7 GHz), and the mmWave band (>24 GHz) as crucial for the new categories of use cases and applications.<\/p>\n

\u201cIndia is already looking into that (spectrum), and they are working in the international community to harmonise it. So there is a path, and I think we need to make sure that happens,\u201d Giusti said.<\/p>\n

Following spectrum availability, India should foster policies to drive affordability and connect everyone, according to the London-headquartered telecom industry association.<\/p>\n

In a global report released on November 5, the association recommended that governments and regulators take three priority actions to secure full advantages of 6G. These include making at least 2 GHz of mid-band spectrum available by around 2030, with further capacity subsequently released to meet growing 6G demand.<\/p>\n

“This should include upper 6 GHz spectrum, supported by additional capacity in the upper 3.5 GHz, 4.5 GHz and 7 GHz bands,” GSMA said in the report, adding that 600 MHz band should also be made available for 6G, with 500 MHz considered where appropriate.<\/p>\n

The GSMA\u2019s members include India\u2019s Reliance Jio<\/a>, Bharti Airtel<\/a> and Vodafone Idea<\/a> (Vi), and multinational operators such as Verizon, AT&T, Axiata, BT, and Deutsche Telekom, among others.<\/p>\n

India\u2019s top telecom incumbents presently provide commercial 5G-backed services, including fixed wireless access (FWA), to enterprises and consumers, to sustain their monetisation initiatives.<\/p>\n

Both Jio and Airtel serve more than 500 million unique 5G subscribers. Vi has lagged in launching its fifth-generation services, but the third-largest telco has gradually scaled 5G coverage across more than 200 cities nationwide.<\/p>\n

Since the launch of 5G services in India<\/a>, the number of 5G base transceiver stations (BTSs) has increased from 1.4 lakh to over 5.6 lakh, according to the Ministry of Communications\u2019 data.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere has been a huge partnership between the industry and the government to make sure that the environment and the spectrum policy have enabled where we are today,\u201d Giusti said.<\/p>\n

Giusti further said that India is signalling intentions to lead the next phase of telecom growth while attempting to identify additional mid-band spectrum to manage capacity requirements.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think they are a leading voice on the potential of this upper 6 gigahertz band and also the 7 gigahertz band in international discussions,\u201d the executive said, adding that India is positioning itself to shape a \u201cregional global harmonised framework for the scale and the capacity for the future\u201d.\n <\/p>\n

Published On Nov 6, 2026 at 07:33 AM IST<\/p>\n

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