Telecom technology researchers asked to develop low-cost user equipment

The government has asked telecom technology researchers to come out with low cost end user equipment to take telephone and broadband services to rural areas.

Addressing a seminar on ''How India can become a leader in wireless communications'' in New Delhi today, telecom secretary Siddhartha Behura said that the infrastructure hurdles can be tackled through technological development. He said that the govrnment aims to reach telecom services to another 350 million people in the next three years.

Behura said that R&D should also be directed towards development of alternate reliable energy resources for the telecom sector. Eminent persons from the academia, industry and technology institutions from India and abroad attended the seminar that is being held as part of the India Telecom 2008.

The two-day event marks India's leading international conference and exhibition for the entire telecom system and is jointly organized by Department of Telecommunications and FICCI.

Behura urged the telecom centres of excellence to identify and develop some cost effective cutting edge technologies for India specific applications and called for the integration of India's efforts with the ITU, leading universities and other such institutions worldwide.

Seven telecom centres of excellence, located at at various IITs, IIM Ahmedabad and Indian Institute of Science Bangalore, have so far been instituted by the centre in public-private partnership mode for bringing in innovations and entrepreneurship in Telecom R&D. They are . The Telecom Secretary hoped that the telecom sector in developing countries like India, China and Brazil will contribute to the global economic recovery.