Telecom Meets Space: Navigating India’s New Legal Architecture For Satellite Communications

India’s telecom and satellite communication landscape has undergone rapid transformation in the past three to four years, demolishing old statutory frameworks and pivoting to the Government’s vision of a Digital India. Various reforms aimed at ease of doing business in India have been brought in – in the form of the Telecommunications Act, 2023 (“Telecom Act”)¹, liberalization of foreign direct investment (“FDI”) in the space sector², and paving way for single window clearances for authorizations³. This shift has ushered in a new era of modern regime as the telecom and space sector see an acceleration in private sector participation and heightened efforts towards a coherent, predictable, contemporary and unified regulatory framework.