India's telecommunication network is the second largest in the world by number of telephone users with over 1.1 billion subscribers as of December 2023. It has one of the lowest call tariffs in the world enabled by mega telecom operators and hyper-competition among them. India has the world's second-largest Internet user-base with over 904 million broadband internet subscribers as of December 2023.
India Post is an Indian government-operated postal system in India, and is the trade name of the Department of Post under the Ministry of Communications. Generally known as the Post Office, it is the most widely distributed postal system in the world. Warren Hastings had taken initiative under East India Company to start the Postal Service in the country in 1766. It was initially established under the name "Company Mail". It was later modified into a service under the Crown in 1854 by Lord Dalhousie. Dalhousie introduced uniform postage rates and helped to pass the India Post Office Act 1854 which significantly improved upon 1837 Post Office act which had introduced regular post offices in India. It created the position Director General of Post for the whole country.
Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited is a central public sector undertaking headquartered in New Delhi, India. It is under the ownership of the Department of Telecommunications, Ministry of Communications, Government of India. It was incorporated on 1 October 2000 by the Government of India. Its top official is designated as Chairman and Managing Director who is a central government civil servant of the Indian Communication Finance Service cadre or a central government engineer of the Indian Telecommunications Service cadre. It provides mobile voice and internet services through its nationwide telecommunications network across India. It is the largest government-owned-wireless telecommunications service provider in India. In 2022, BSNL reported a loss of Rs 57,671 crore since inception.In the financial year 2022-23 it incurred a loss of Rs 6,662 crore.
Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL) (d/b/a MTNL) is a 'Navratna' Category Public sector undertakings in India which is in turn under the ownership of the Department of Telecommunications, Ministry of Communications, Government of India. Headquartered in New Delhi, India. MTNL Provides services in the metro cities of Mumbai and New Delhi in India and in the island nation of Mauritius in Africa. It had a monopoly in Mumbai and New Delhi until 1992, when the telecom sector was opened to other service providers. "एमटीएनएल है, तो सही है" {"MTNL hai to sahi hai"} (Meaning: If MTNL is there, then everything is fine) & "Transparency makes us different" is its motto. The Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited currently holds 100% of its stock. . As of June 2021, it has 3.28 million subscribers. It is also a wholly owned subsidiary of a central public sector unit.
In India, mobile numbers on GSM, WCDMA, LTE and NR networks start with either 9, 8, 7 or 6. Each telecom circle is allowed to have multiple private operators; earlier it was two private + BSNL/MTNL, subsequently it changed to three private + BSNL/MTNL in GSM; now each telecom circle has all four operators including Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, Vodafone idea ltd and BSNL/MTNL.
The Department of Telecommunications, abbreviated to DoT, is a department of the Ministry of Communications of the executive branch of the Government of India.
Ashok Jhunjhunwala is an Indian academic and innovator. He received his B.Tech. from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur and PhD from the University of Maine. He has been a faculty member at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras since 1981. He is the President of IIT Madras Research Park and Chairman of International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad. During his career, he has contributed extensively to technology innovation and adoption in the Indian context.
BSNL Broadband is an Indian wireline broadband operator, a division of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited owned by Department of Telecommunications under Ministry of Communications of the Government of India. It provides both wired and wireless broadband services as well as many value-added services. BSNL Broadband launched its services on 14 January 2005 as Data One.
BSNL Mobile is an Indian state-owned telecommunication company of the Government of India. BSNL Mobile operates under the BSNL brand and provides wireless cellular services to B2B, B2C, & B2G segments in India. BSNL Mobile has a pan-India presence with presence in all the 22 telecom circles in India.
The Indian Post & Telecommunication Accounts and Finance Service ( IP&TAFS) is a Group "A" Central Civil Services of the Union of India. The Service was started in the year 1972 for prudent and professional management of the finances of the Department of Posts and Department of Telecommunications which were the sole provider of the communications needs of the country at that time. Gradually, over time the service has crystallized into a professional cadre of over 376 officers. In 2017, 25 officers were recruited through prestigious Civil Services Examination conducted by Union Public Service Commission.
The Indian Telecommunications Service, widely known as ITS, and earlier known as 'Telegraph Engineering Service Class I' is one of the Central Civil Services under Group 'A' of the executive branch of the Government of India. The appointment to this service is done through Combined Engineering Services Exam held every year by Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) of India. The service was created to meet the techno managerial needs of the government in areas related to telecommunications. The Department of Telecommunications (DOT) had been managed for years by the officers of this permanent cadre, called the Indian Telecommunications Service (ITS).The officers of ITS work under restrictions and rules of Central Civil Services (Conduct) rules.
Centre for Excellence in Telecom Technology and Management (CETTM) located in Hiranandani Gardens, Powai, Mumbai is the telecom training centre of MTNL, the incumbent operator of Government of India (GOI). It was founded in 2003 as one of the largest telecom training centres in India and amongst the biggest in Asia. The Centre provides extensive training to corporate employees, students, and MTNL's internal employees in telecom switching, transmission, wireless communication, telecom operations and management.
The National Payments Corporation of India is an organization that operates retail payments and settlement systems in India. The organization is an initiative of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) under the provisions of the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007, for creating a robust Payment & Settlement Infrastructure in India.
Air Force Network (AFNet) is an Indian Air Force (IAF) owned, operated and managed digital information grid. The AFNet replaces the Indian Air Force's (IAF) old communication network set-up using the tropo-scatter technology of the 1950s making it a true net-centric combat force. The IAF project is part of the overall mission to network all three services, that is The Indian Army, The Indian Navy and The Indian Air Force. The former Defence Minister AK Antony inaugurated the IAF's the AFNET on 14 September 2010 dedicating it to the people of India, for their direct or indirect participation in the communication revolution.
BharatNet, also known as Bharat Broadband Network Limited (BBNL), is a central public sector undertaking, set up by the Department of Telecommunications, a department under Ministry of Communications of the Government of India for the establishment, management, and operation of the National Optical Fibre Network to provide a minimum of 100 Mbit/s broadband connectivity to all 250,000-gram panchayats in the country, covering nearly 625,000 villages, by improving the middle layer of nation-wide broadband internet in India to achieve the goal of Digital India.
Public Sector Undertakings (PSU) or Public Sector Enterprises (PSE) in India are government-owned enterprises in which 51 percent or more share capital is held by the Government of India or state governments or joint ventures between multiple Public Sector Enterprises. Depending on the level of government ownership, they can be broadly categorised as Central PSUs or State PSUs. These entities include government companies, statutory corporations, banking institutions, and departmentally run companies. PSUs are officially classified into three categories, which are Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSE) and Public Sector Banks (PSB) owned by the central government or other CPSEs/PSBs, and State Level Public Enterprises (SLPE) owned by state governments or other SLPEs. CPSE is further classified into Strategic Sector and Non-Strategic Sector. Depending on their financial performance and progress, CPSEs are granted the status of Maharatna, Navaratna, and Miniratna.
India Post Payments Bank, abbreviated as IPPB, is a division of India Post that is under the ownership of the Department of Post, a department under the Ministry of Communications of the Government of India. Opened in 2018, as of January 2024, the bank has more than 8 crore customers.
Telephone / Telecom Advisory Committees (TAC) is a high level Indian government body made up of members of parliament and other members nominated by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology to address issues concerning telecommunication in India. Looked upon as a privileged panel, the Telephone Advisory Committees, constituted by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (India) of the Government of India to serve as a vital feedback mechanism for improvement of services in the Telecommunications sector by the Department of Telecommunications
Telecom Advisory Committee (TAC) is a high level Indian government body made up of members of parliament and other members nominated by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology to address issues concerning telecommunication in India. Looked upon as a privileged panel, the Telecom Advisory Committees, constituted by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (India) of the Government of India to serve as a vital feedback mechanism for improvement of services in the Telecommunications sector by the Department of Telecommunications.
