New Delhi, Jul 24: The Centre has prohibited communication infrastructure providers, including cloud-based telecom network operators, mobile tower companies and satellite gateway providers, from storing or sharing telecommunication data outside India under a new authorisation framework issued by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT).
According to a notification issued on July 20, all telecommunication network systems, along with associated data, logs and information, must be stored exclusively within India.
“Every new authorised entity shall ensure that all systems of its telecommunication network and the data, logs and information associated with its telecommunication network shall be stored within India and no copies of such data, logs and information shall be routed, shared or made available outside India,” the notification said.
The new authorisation framework, introduced under the Telecommunications Act, 2023, is part of the government’s move to replace the traditional licensing regime with a lighter regulatory framework.
The rules apply to infrastructure providers, digital connectivity infrastructure providers, internet exchange point operators, satellite earth station gateways, cloud-hosted telecommunication network providers and national mobile number portability service providers.
The framework also empowers the Centre to inspect telecom sites, including equipment installed at users’ premises, audit compliance systems and, in cases deemed necessary in the public interest, conduct inspections without prior notice.
For compliance monitoring, the government may appoint a designated agency to audit the processes and systems of authorised entities. The notification states that such agencies will not collect or disclose commercially sensitive information that could harm the competitive position of service providers or users.
The rules further clarify that delays in obtaining Right of Way (RoW) permissions for network deployment will not be accepted as grounds for non-compliance with regulatory obligations.
Industry experts said the data localisation requirement is expected to boost demand for domestic data centres.
Anupam Shrivastava, Head of Submer India and former BSNL Chairman and Managing Director, described the framework as a significant step towards a secure, cloud-integrated and sustainable digital infrastructure.
He said the mandatory localisation of telecom data would drive substantial growth in India’s data centre sector, while the introduction of the new Cloud-Hosted Telecommunication Network Provider category—with a one-time entry fee of ₹10 lakh and no annual authorisation fee—would encourage wider adoption of cloud-based telecom infrastructure.
Meanwhile, ITU-APT Foundation of India President Bharat Bhatia welcomed the detailed guidelines but pointed out that the issue of spectrum allocation for private satellite gateway operators remains unresolved. He said clarity on spectrum assignment would be crucial for the effective operation of gateway services by private players.
