Gandhinagar: The Gujarat government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in Gandhinagar with the London-based company OneWeb and the Indian government’s Department of Science and Technology, to establish a “Satellite Network Portal Site”. This initiative aims to provide high-speed, low-latency, and affordable connectivity to various entities such as the government, businesses, consumers, and schools. It will enable continuous and secure satellite internet access at reasonable rates across the country.
As part of the Digital India initiative, this project is geared towards offering internet access at a reasonable cost to villages, district panchayats, local administrative bodies, and government departments throughout India. Two Satellite Network Portal Sites will be established in Gujarat and Tamil Nadu, with the first one launching in Jotana, Mehsana district. The projected cost for Phase-I is over Rs. 100 crores, and it is expected to create approximately 500 direct and indirect job opportunities in Gujarat.
OneWeb, a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite corporation, plans to establish a worldwide communication network using up to 648 satellites. Unlike traditional geostationary satellites stationed 36,000 km above the equator, OneWeb utilizes LEO to build a broadband network. This technology offers better network performance with a latency of less than 100ms compared to the typical 500-700ms latency of Geo- synchronous Equatorial Orbit (GEO) networks. Currently operational in Canada and Europe, OneWeb’s approach is considered safe and reliable. The corporation aims to provide cost-effective satellite connectivity services to internet service providers and mobile network operators in India.
