Elon Musk’s Starlink Plans to Build 20 Gateways Across India: Report

As per the NDTV Profit report, Starlink is set to conduct spectrum tests from its Navi Mumbai terminals. The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) granted the company provisional spectrum clearance on August 12, 2025, to build ground infrastructure and run security checks.

Gateway Setup

The company has drawn up plans to install 20 earth stations, or gateways, in India. These are expected to come up in Noida, Chennai, and Navi Mumbai. 3 of the proposed sites are already under construction. The gateway network will need at least 50,000 user terminals, which will be imported from Texas, Los Angeles, and Seattle.

Licences in Place

Starlink holds a Global Mobile Personal Communication by Satellite (GMPCS) licence. It also has approvals from the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe). In July, Telecom Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia confirmed that the company had been granted a unified licence to offer satellite services in India.

Spectrum Pricing Unsettled

While provisional permissions are in place, spectrum pricing remains unresolved between the DoT and the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). Bharti-backed Eutelsat OneWeb and Jio SES are also waiting for spectrum allocation to begin satellite communication services in the country.

Customer Onboarding

Starlink has tied up with the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) to use Aadhaar-based verification. The company has the capacity to add up to 20 lakh users. Each user terminal is expected to cost about ₹33,000, with a monthly subscription of around ₹3,000.

Satellite Network Approval

In July, IN-SPACe gave Starlink a 5-year authorisation to operate its Gen1 constellation of 4,408 low Earth orbit satellites over India. The constellation can provide throughput of up to 600 Gbps. 

The government has also directed that all user data in India must be stored locally and not routed through overseas gateways.

Read more: Elon Musk’s SpaceX to Acquire EchoStar Spectrum for $17 Billion to Advance Direct-to-Cell Service!

Conclusion

Starlink’s plan to set up 20 gateways marks progress in its India rollout. The pace of expansion will depend on spectrum allocation decisions.

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