India to host World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly in Delhi
By TIOL News Service
NEW DELHI, SEP 27, 2024: AS India gears for hosting World Telecom Standardisation Assembly (WTSA2024), Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has set the ball rolling by launching the WTSA2024 Outreach Sessions. Scheduled in Delhi, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru, the outreach sessions aim to provide a distinctive platform to students for learning and direct engagement with industry experts, fostering meaningful interactions and knowledge exchange. The WTSA 2024 is being held for the first time in ITU's history of 150 yrs in India from 14th-24th October 2024. It will be attended by world leader and experts of Telecom field from 190+ countries.
The outreach sessions were today held at Delhi Technical University (Delhi), Indian Institute of Science (Bangalore) and Indian Institute of Information Technology (Hyderabad). Prominent dignitaries from ITU, National Communication Academy, Telecom Engineering centre, senior professors and leading experts from the telecom industry engaged students in discussions about the WTSA, ITU, and the critical role of telecom standards in fostering global connectivity and innovation. The sessions emphasized how standardization supports the deployment of technologies like 5G and the upcoming 6G, ensuring interoperability and influencing the future of global telecommunications.
The event was attended by more than 500 students physically across the three institutes, in addition to more than 450 participants joining the event in online mode. The sessions were an opportunity for young minds to grasp the importance of telecom standard in shaping India's leadership in the telecom sector. It also explained ways by which they contribute to shaping the future of telecom.
Deb Kumar Chakrabarti, Director General, National Communication Academy; R.R. Mittar, WTSA-24 Chair Designate; Prof Prateek Sharma, Vice Chancellor, DTU; Prof. Bharadwaj Amrutur, Director, ArtPark, IISc; Atul Sinha, Rajesh Gupta, Avinash Agarwal Dy DG, and other senior officers from DoT and its field offices shared valuable inputs with the participants. On the side-lines of the event, interacting with Media, Hemendra K Sharma, Spokesperson, DoT said that India's hosting of WTSA-2024 is an opportunity to influence the global telecom agenda as we prepare for advancements like 6G and beyond.
Following the WTSA outreach session, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) launched the 5G-6G Hackathon 2024, designed to identify and promote innovations and applications tailored to India's unique needs, fostering the development of next-generation telecom technologies. The hackathon attracted a diverse range of participants, including telecom stakeholders from government, academia, and industry.
The participants of Hackathon aim to develop India-specific use cases harnessing the capabilities of 5G,6G and its associated technologies.
About WTSA 2024:
India is set to make a significant mark in the telecommunications sector by hosting the World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly (WTSA) in New Delhi, from October 15th to 24th. This will be the first time such a pivotal ITU standards conference is held in Asia. Over 190 nations will gather to shape the future of global telecom standards, highlighting India's growing influence in the global telecom industry.
It also marks the country's growing importance in the global technology landscape. The WTSA is a quadrennial event and serves as the governing conference of the ITU (International Telecommunication Union) Standardisation Sector (ITU-T). It is one of the three world conferences organized by the International Telecommunication Union, an entity within the United Nations system. This event plays a pivotal role in setting global telecommunication standards, making India's hosting of the WTSA a significant milestone.
About WTSA side events:
The WTSA 2024, will be accompanied by other notable events initiatives such as the ITU Kaleidoscope conference (21-23 Oct 2024), ITU exhibitions (14-24 Oct 2024), Network of Women (17 Oct 2024) and AI for Good (18 Oct 2024) to enrich the discourse and promote inclusivity in the sector.More details are available at www.delhiwtsa24.in.
