Airtel Chairman Sunil Mittal gave a befitting reply to Musk’s conspiracy allegation on delay in Starlink’s entry in India. Sunil Bharti Mittal Responds To Elon Musk Jibe Over Starlink India Entry Delay says He Is Impatient and Frustrated

Airtel Chairman Sunil Mittal has given a befitting reply to Elon Musk on the ongoing controversy regarding Starlink’s entry in India. During a conversation with NDTV Group Editor-in-Chief Rahul Kanwal in NDTV’s special program ‘Walk the Talk’, Sunil Mittal spoke openly about Starlink’s entry in India. Countering the allegations made by Elon Musk against Indian businessmen, he said that Musk is showing some haste and irritation in this matter, whereas the reality is that the security of the country is paramount in this process.

Giving the example of the Ukraine crisis, he warned that during the Russia-Ukraine war, people’s lives are at risk due to low speed of satellite systems and internet. This is the reason why today countries around the world are thinking a hundred times before handing over their important and critical digital infrastructure to any foreign player. It is clear from this statement of Mittal that satellite internet companies in India will also have to work within the security standards and rules of the country.

India must have ‘kill switch’ and control

Talking about the future of satellite communication, Mittal said that today satellite internet is very important for mountains, dense forests, oil rigs in the sea and for defense needs like drone warfare. He said that foreign companies can be allowed to work in India, but the condition is that the Indian government should have complete control, line interception and ‘kill switch’ i.e. the right to shut down in case of emergency.

All centers of OneWeb are in India, questions raised on Musk’s system

Mittal said that his company OneWeb has built two earth stations in Mehsana in Gujarat and Kochi in South India, which have received full security clearance. Here every signal and conversation lands on Indian soil and cannot be bypassed. At the same time, Starlink satellites have the technology of ‘Inter-Satellite Link’, through which data can be transferred directly in space. Mittal finally said that for commercial customers, it is okay for companies like Starlink, OneWeb or Amazon Leo to enter the market, but for this it is mandatory for the government to have complete trust and control.

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