THEBUSINESSBYTES BUREAU

NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 5, 2026

Union Minister for Communications Jyotiraditya M Scindia on Monday reviewed final preparations for the 10th edition of India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2026, which is set to showcase India’s expanding telecom and digital ecosystem and its growing ambitions as a global technology leader.

Scindia visited the IMC 2026 venue at Yashobhoomi in Dwarka ahead of its inauguration by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 8.

The four-day event, themed “Scale Without Boundaries”, is expected to draw more than 1.5 lakh attendees, 500 exhibitors and partners, 600 startups and over 900 thought leaders from across the technology and telecommunications ecosystem.

During his visit, Scindia toured the exhibition area, interacted with startups and exhibitors and chaired review meetings with senior officials of the Department of Telecommunications, Cellular Operators Association of India and partner agencies.

 “The 10th edition of India Mobile Congress is here. Tremendous amount of excitement, energy, pulsing capabilities and proven model of Indian telecom connectivity. The connectivity on which new frontiers of technology are being explored,” Scindia said.

 “Come, be a part of this experience where we will have thousands of exhibitors, hundreds of companies, new products as India moves from a services nation to a product nation,” he added.

IMC 2026 will bring together governments, industry leaders, startups, investors, academia and technology innovators to deliberate on emerging technologies, investment opportunities and the future of digital connectivity.

India's telecom sector has undergone rapid expansion, with the country now having 1.01 billion broadband subscribers and more than one billion internet subscribers. 5G services have reached 99.9 per cent of districts and cover around 85 per cent of the population, while 98.7 per cent of villages have access to 4G connectivity.

The country has also become the fifth nation globally to develop its own indigenous 4G stack, marking a significant step towards technological self-reliance and strengthening India's capabilities in designing, developing and deploying advanced telecom technologies.

The event will feature the 3rd International 6G Symposium, CEO and CTO roundtables, deliberations on semiconductor and core component supply chains, telecom stacks for the artificial intelligence era, telecom product manufacturing, satellite communications, 5G monetisation, telecom and quantum convergence and cybersecurity.

Several innovation and startup-focused programmes, including the 5G Innovation Hackathon, Startup World Cup India 2026, ITU Build-A-Thon on AI Agents for 5G Networks and Robotics for Youth Challenge, are also scheduled during the event.

The programme will additionally feature a Ministerial Programme on “Investing in the Next Billion Digital Connections”, a CEO Roundtable on “The Sovereign Inflection & the Future of Telecom”, AI for Good, a Cyber Security Summit and an AI Safety India-UK Panel, among other global technology initiatives.

With more than 2,000 technology use cases and over 120 sessions, IMC 2026 is expected to provide a platform for businesses, policymakers, researchers and innovators to explore partnerships and exchange ideas around the next phase of digital transformation.

The event is also expected to bring together more than 300 investors, incubators, accelerators and venture capital firms, with over 700 investor meetings planned to help startups and technology enterprises access global capital, mentorship and new markets.

The government and industry organisers expect IMC 2026 to strengthen India's position as a major destination for telecom innovation, technology investment and digital collaboration as the country seeks to move beyond being a large technology services market towards becoming a global product and innovation hub.