What happened: DoT and C-DOT sign a five-year End-to-End Optical Network Test Bed agreement
The Department of Telecommunications (DoT), Ministry of Communications, Government of India, signed a strategic five-year agreement with the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT) to set up an End-to-End Optical Network Test Bed. DoT-funded and supported, the test bed will be located at the C-DOT Campus in New Delhi and will provide a real-world environment for developing, testing, and commercializing optical communication solutions by Indian startups and industry players.
The agreement was signed on 27 August 2026, with representatives of DoT and C-DOT present in the presence of Sh. Alok Shukla (Advisor (Technology), DoT), Dr. Rajkumar Upadhyay (CEO, C-DOT), and Sh. Atul Kumar Singh (DDG (Networks & Technologies), DoT).
Background and earlier position: C-DOT as a DoT technology R&D centre and the gap between lab and market
C-DOT is described as a premier telecom technology research and development centre of DoT. The stated purpose of the test bed is to reduce a common gap in technology ecosystems: lab-stage innovation often needs additional real-world testing before it becomes market-ready.
The DoT–C-DOT test bed is positioned as a shared national resource to support innovation, testing, validation, skill development, and commercialization—especially for home-grown optical communication technologies.