India nominates DoT’s M. Revathi for a seat at International Telecommunication Union for 2027-2030 term

India has formally nominated M. Revathi, Joint Wireless Adviser at the Department of Telecommunications’ Wireless Planning and Coordination (WPC) wing, for the position of Director of the Telecommunication Standardisation Bureau (TSB) at the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) for the 2027–2030 term.

Revathi, a veteran in telecommunications and space technology, is among several global candidates—from France, Japan, Germany and others—announced at the World Telecommunication Development Conference 2025 (WTDC-25) in Baku, Azerbaijan. The role she is contesting is central to shaping international telecom regulations and standards at a time when global digital infrastructure is undergoing rapid transformation.

Her nomination comes amid intensifying competition in commercial satellite communications. With Starlink, Amazon’s Project Kuiper and other private operators accelerating deployments, experts warn that orbital access—though legally a shared global resource under the Outer Space Treaty of 1967—is becoming increasingly scarce and dominated by corporations from developed nations. This, they argue, risks widening the digital divide and limiting equitable access for developing economies.

Opening the High-Level Segment on Day 1 of WTDC-25, Minister of State for Communications, C.S. Pemmasani, framed India’s nomination as part of a strategic push to amplify the voice of the Global South. He positioned India as a bridge between developed and developing nations, emphasising the need for fair technology access and robust frameworks for technology transfer that benefit low- and middle-income countries.

The ITU’s election cycle is now underway, with final voting scheduled at the ITU Plenipotentiary Conference (PP-26) in Doha, Qatar, in November 2026. The outcome will shape global digital governance and influence how countries safeguard their digital sovereignty in the years ahead.