The Starlink network possesses s a vast constellation of LEO satellites designed to beam high-speed internet with very low latency. It can reach almost anywhere on earth, even in regions that are considered remote and underserved by land broadband and mobile networks. While geostationary satellites reside at around 35,786 km and hence suffer from high latency, Starlink’s LEO satellites hover at an altitude of nearly 550 km. Therefore, these satellites can be exploited for real-time applications like video conferencing, online education, and telemedicine.
One of the most attractive aspect of Starlink is probably the circumvention of the need for foundational terrestrial installation. Traditional broadband service is provided through fiber-optic cables, DSL, and cellular towers, which are costly. Moreover, they are hard to place in rural, mountainous, or heavily forested areas. Starlink needs the end-user terminal, which is a compact satellite dish that can be installed simply, with no underground wiring or complex setup. So, by design, the deployment of the system is quick and scalable. This way, thousands of people, almost overnight, can be connected in other already unserved regions.
Starlink has shown its capabilities across the globe, with examples like in Ukraine, where it provided resilient connectivity in their time of need. In India, it has great potential given its geographic scale of India. It can be easily accessible for millions of students and elderly citizens who live without internet service. Starlink can keep them digitally connected.
Industry experts believe that partnerships would allow Starlink to greatly reduce costs by working with large telecom operators such as Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel. These collaborations potentially resulted in lower prices, around ₹3,000 per month, higher than mobile data, but presumably affordable to village clusters with possible subsidies.
