The Maharashtra government has signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) with Starlink to deploy satellite internet services for government institutions, rural communities and critical public infrastructure, the Indian Express reported the report. The report said the services will also be rolled out in remote and underserved regions and districts of the state like Gadiroli, Nandurbar, Washim and Darashiv. It will provide connectivity along the Samruddhi Mahamarg corridor, ferries and vehicles, police and police services, and connectivity services for use cases such as education and telemedicine.
The joint task force will oversee a 90-day Starlink pilot in the state, the report said. The pilot phase will focus on connecting government and tribal schools, Aaple Sarkar centers and primary health centers (PHCs). The partnership is subject to Starlink regulatory approvals and requirements from the Department of Telecommunications (DoT).
The development comes after Starlink completed regulatory approvals from both the DoT and the Indian National Space Advancement and Authorization Center (IN-SPACe) in July this year. The government has since allocated its temporary spectrum and plans to demonstrate compliance with technical and safety standards for its satellite network this August. The company has also roped in the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) for Aadhaar-based customer authentication.
Scope of satellite communication in India:
In July, Minister of State for Communications Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar pointed out that Starlink has limited capacity in terms of the number of subscribers on its network and the speeds it can offer. He claimed that this limitation is due to the company’s capacity limitation, which means that each area of the country will only be able to get about 40-50,000 connections. Sekhar also explained that the cost of installing and using satellite services would be relatively high, with monthly costs of around Rs 3,000, making them not an option for every customer.
Given these limitations, it is unclear how financially viable these services will be for players like Starlink. Both the cost and the ability to provide limited connections are a concern given the push for satellite services to fill connectivity gaps in rural and remote areas.
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Why this partnership is important:
In this context, government partnership can be a potential stable source of income for Starlink. Instead of competing directly in the mass consumer market, where a monthly cost of Rs 3,000 would be prohibitive, focusing on government institutions and public infrastructure could allow the company to deploy its limited capabilities in a more strategic way. Also, given the costs suggested by Sekhar of 3,000 rupees per month, government support could be important to make these services available in rural areas, either through direct subsidies or by focusing on common institutional access points rather than connecting individual households.
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