COAI bats for standard power outdoor use of lower 6 GHz band

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Enabling them would ensure the 500 MHz of delicensed spectrum is fully used and can be accessed by all service providers

By PTI

Updated - October 28, 2026 at 10:24 AM. | New Delhi

Telecom operators' body COAI on Tuesday urged the telecom department to quickly notify rule amendments allowing standard power operations in the delicensed lower 6 GHz band.

COAI said the industry believes the recommendation must be implemented without further delay.

"Several months" have passed since the committee submitted its report, COAI Director General SP Kochhar said.

He said last-mile connectivity gaps persist in rural, semi-urban and hard-to-reach areas because of right-of-way challenges, limited fibre availability and high deployment costs.

Standard power outdoor use, he said, is a practical and cost-effective answer.

Fixed wireless access and point-to-multipoint deployments at standard power suit last-mile delivery where fibre is absent, unviable or impractical, Kochhar said.

Enabling them would ensure the 500 MHz of delicensed spectrum is fully used and can be accessed by all service providers.

COAI said limiting the band to low-power indoor use would underutilise it.

The body wants the spectrum to serve not just indoor enterprise and consumer wi-fi but also drive rural broadband and digital inclusion.

"COAI believes limiting this band to low-power indoor use would underutilise its potential. Enabling these operations will ensure that India's delicensed spectrum serves not just indoor enterprise and consumer wi-fi but becomes a genuine engine of rural broadband penetration and digital inclusion," the industry body said.

It asked the telecom department to expedite the rules for point-to-multipoint and point-to-point operations so that licensed and authorised entities can deploy the capability.

Published on October 28, 2026

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