New Delhi – VSAT Association of India (VSAI), Global VSAT Forum (GVF), and Cable & Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (CASBAA) have appealed to the Indian government to reconsider allocating existing satellite services’ bandwidth to terrestrial wireless service, Wimax.

This was raised at an emergency meeting with representatives from the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) and the Planning Commission, which reports directly to the Cabinet.

The associations contend current demand for satellite services has already outstripped available bandwidth and reassigning the spectrum to Wimax will worsen the situation. Bandwidth shortfall in the 3.4 – 3.7 GHz range used by Indian and international satellite operators could adversely affect satellite services, including numerous TV channels across India.

They also proposed the government adopt an 'open sky' policy for DTH and VSAT operators by allowing long-term Indian access to international satellite services, with domestic satellite resources deemed to be insufficient to sustain India’s growth