Technology Advisory Group (TAG) of Empowered Technology Group (ETG) meets to discuss A Strategic Roadmap for India’s Telecom Sector and establishing a dedicated “Communication Technology Task Force”

The Technology Advisory Group (TAG) constituted by the Empowered Technology Group (ETG) convened its fourth meeting on 10 July 2026 under the chairmanship of Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood, Principal Scientific Adviser (PSA) to the Government of India. The meeting focused on identifying priority technology domains for the telecom sector and assessing the need for a dedicated national R&D intervention.

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Quick Revision

Prelims-testable facts

01The Technology Advisory Group (TAG) of the Empowered Technology Group (ETG) is responsible for developing a Strategic Roadmap for India's Telecom Sector.
02The TAG meeting on 10 July 2026 was chaired by Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India.
03Prof. Sood highlighted that telecom technologies form the foundation of India's digital economy and are essential for digital public infrastructure, artificial intelligence, cloud computing, industrial automation, and critical infrastructure.
04The meeting aimed to identify priority technology domains for the telecom sector and assess the need for a dedicated national R&D intervention.
05India's vision for its telecom sector includes an integrated, future-ready, and fast-moving sector that extends beyond traditional telecom services to encompass data centres, non-terrestrial networks, space-based communications, and AI-native networks.
06The Digital Bharat Nidhi scheme provides support for research, innovation, and early deployment of indigenous technologies in the telecom sector.
07Key speakers at the TAG meeting emphasized the need for indigenous capabilities in strategic areas such as 5G-Advanced/6G, AI-native networks, Open RAN, satellite communications, cloud-native networks, and telecom semiconductors.

Trap alerts

Most people think that India's Telecom Sector is solely focused on traditional telecom services, but actually it aims to extend beyond these services to encompass data centres, non-terrestrial networks, space-based communications, and AI-native networks.
Most people think that the TAG meeting was only about discussing a Strategic Roadmap for India's Telecom Sector, but actually it also aimed to establish a dedicated 'Communication Technology Task Force'.
Most people think that Prof. Sood is the sole chairperson of the TAG meetings, but actually he chairs one of the meetings and other members may lead or co-chair different meetings.

Prelims Practice MCQs

Single facteasy

Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood is the Principal Scientific Adviser (PSA) to which government?

A.Government of India
B.State Government of Maharashtra
C.Central Government of Delhi
D.Union Territory of Chandigarh

Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India; Prof. Sood chairs the TAG meeting.

Statement I & IIhard

Consider the following two statements: Statement-I: The Digital Bharat Nidhi scheme provides funding for research and innovation in indigenous technologies. Statement-II: Shri Amit Agarwal, Secretary, Department of Telecommunications (DoT), highlighted the importance of aligning ongoing national initiatives with institutional mechanisms to support long-term technology development. Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

A.Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II is the correct explanation for Statement-I
B.Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct but Statement-II is not the correct explanation for Statement-I
C.Statement-I is correct but Statement-II is incorrect
D.Statement-I is incorrect but Statement-II is correct

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