Indian Telcos will not be Allowed to Place 5G Orders with Chinese Vendors

Indian telecom operators can’t place any 5G network management orders with Chinese vendors ZTE and Huawei. But they can still take their help with upgrading the existing 4G networks. Because the Chinese vendors have built 4G networks of most telcos, except Reliance Jio. Jio and Airtel have already rolled out 5G in India, they have done so with the help of European vendors. There’s no involvement of any Chinese company in that.

According to the recent Financial Express report, the telcos can’t purchase equipment for 5G from Chinese companies. Recently, the Indian government also announced that it doesn’t want any involvement of Chinese vendors in the future generation of telecom networks owing to security concerns.

Indian Telcos will not be Allowed to Place 5G Orders with Chinese Vendors

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The restriction on Chinese vendors for 5G networks is not only due to security concerns but also aims to promote domestic telecom equipment players as viable alternatives in this segment. For example, the 4G and 5G stack developed by a consortium led by TCS for state-owned BSNL could be explored by private telcos as well, said the report.

Telecom companies will require to seek permission from the National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS) when upgrading their networks using equipment from non-trusted companies. Recently, the government approved Vodafone Idea’s network upgrade order worth Rs 200 crore with ZTE. The company will supply optical transmission equipment for the telecom operator’s existing network upgrades in select circles.

The National Security Directive on the Telecom Sector in December 2020 introduced trusted source norms. According to that telecom companies and licensed importers of telecom products procure equipment from designated countries that do not pose a threat to India’s national security.

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