New Delhi, August 7: Elon Musk’s Starlink Satellite Communications will store all user data and internet traffic within India, the central government informed Parliament on Thursday. The company is not allowed to mirror or route any user data through foreign servers, ensuring full compliance with India’s data sovereignty and national security policies.
Union Minister of State for Communications and Rural Development, Dr Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar, in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha, said that Starlink has been granted a Unified License (UL) in June by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) after accepting all terms, including stringent security conditions.
These conditions mandate that all satellite gateways for Indian users must be located within the country, and prohibit copying, decrypting, or mirroring Indian user data outside India. The move ensures that Starlink’s affordable satellite-based internet services, expected to launch soon, remain fully under Indian jurisdiction.
In addition, Starlink received authorisation from IN-SPACe (Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre) last month, valid for five years. The company is currently in the process of acquiring necessary spectrum and setting up ground infrastructure to begin operations. The DoT is preparing to issue trial spectrum for security compliance checks.
Highlighting economic benefits, the Minister said satellite-based services will boost employment by creating roles in installation, operation, and maintenance of terminal and gateway infrastructure.
