Tejas Networks, a Tata group company, has acquired a 5G Radio Access Network (RAN) technology license. The technology was collaboratively developed by IIT Madras, IIT Kanpur, and the Society for Applied Microwave Electronics and Research (SAMEER) in a significant technology transfer deal, with a transaction value of Rs 12 crore. "The three institutions are jointly licensing the 5G RAN technology to Tejas Networks (A Tata Group Company) who will play a vital role in leveraging it for further advancements and commercial applications", according to an official Statement.

The indigenous telecommunications equipment manufacturer will make multiple installment payments totaling Rs 12 crore for a Transfer of Technology (ToT) non-exclusive license fee. These payments will be contingent on achieving various technical milestones. The agreement was officially executed at the IIT Madras campus in the presence of key individuals, including V. Kamakoti, Director of IIT Madras; Kumar N. Sivarajan, Chief Technology Officer of Tejas Networks; Bhaskar Ramamurthi from IIT Madras; P. Hanumantha Rao, Director General of SAMEER; Rohit Budhiraja from IIT Kanpur; and Radhakrishna Ganti from IIT Madras. These individuals, among others, serve as the Principal Investigators of the 5G Testbed from their respective institutes.

Additional attendees at the event comprised Sudhir K. Marwaha, Group Coordinator CC & BT at the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Manu Santhanam, Dean of Industrial Consultancy and Sponsored Research (IC&SR) at IIT Madras, Heads of academic departments at IIT Madras, the 5G Test Bed team, the team from the Centre of Excellence in Wireless Technology (CEWIT), and the IC&SR IPM Cell team at IIT Madras, among others, as mentioned in the statement.

"I am very pleased that Tejas Networks is planning to adopt this 5G RAN technology developed indigenously by a multi-institutional team of researchers. This initiative is in line with the Atmanirbhar Bharat vision of the government of India", Kamakoti said. "Our faculty have played a pivotal role in the development of this state-of-the-art indigenous 5G Testbed, specifically by developing the Baseband Unit (BBU) of the 5G NR base station at the institute", said S. Ganesh, Director, IIT Kanpur. "This collaborative effort not only complements India’s stride in ground-breaking transformative innovation but also opens up tremendous growth prospects for India’s rapidly evolving telecommunication industry".

The indigenous development of the 5G Test Bed resulted from a collaborative effort among eight institutes, supported by funding from the Department of Telecommunications (DoT). Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the 5G Test Bed in May 2022, and both industry and academia have extensively utilized it to test emerging 5G products and explore various use cases. "SAMEER has contributed to building an active MIMO and massive MIMO antennas and fully integrated mmWave phased arrays at FR1 (Sub 6 GHz) and FR2 (mmWave) bands respectively. The knowledge sharing of fully-functional 5G RAN technology of SAMEER in collaboration with IIT Madras and IIT Kanpur to Industry is a breakthrough achievement to create a secured 5G eco-space in the telecom sector", Rao said.