The CoE aims to accelerate indigenous research, innovation, and capacity building in advanced communication domains
The CoE will serve as a dedicated hub for high-impact R&D and will strengthen academia – industry synergy by leveraging the academic excellence of IIT Hyderabad and C-DOT’s expertise
This initiative marks the fourth such CoE established by C-DOT following similar CoEs at IIT Kanpur, IIT Gandhinagar, and IIT Roorkee
Centre of Excellence to Function as a Nodal Hub for High-Impact Research and Development in Advanced Communication Technologies
HYDERABAD, JUNE 24, 2026: The Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT), the premier telecom R&D centre under the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), Ministry of Communications, Government of India, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad (IITH), a leading institution of national importance, to advance research and innovation in next-generation communication technologies.
As part of this strategic collaboration, C-DOT is establishing a Centre of Excellence (CoE) at IIT Hyderabad. The CoE aims to accelerate indigenous research, innovation, and capacity building in advanced communication domains, with a strong focus on wireless communications, quantum technologies, cybersecurity, and AI-driven applications. This initiative marks the fourth such CoE established by C-DOT, following similar CoEs at IIT Kanpur, IIT Gandhinagar, and IIT Roorkee, thereby further strengthening the national innovation ecosystem.
The CoE will serve as a dedicated hub for high-impact R&D and will strengthen academia–industry synergy by leveraging the academic excellence of IIT Hyderabad and C-DOT’s expertise in indigenous telecom solutions. It will enable students, researchers, and startups to contribute to India’s technological self-reliance and innovation journey. The centre will undertake joint research and prototype development in emerging domains such as 5G Advanced/6G technologies, very large-scale MIMO systems, integrated sensing and communication systems, AI-enabled communication networks and devices, and quantum & post-quantum communications.
The MoU was signed in the presence of Prof. B. S. Murty, Director, IIT Hyderabad, and Dr. Rajkumar Upadhyay, CEO, C-DOT, along with faculty members from the institute and senior officials from C-DOT. The signing ceremony was followed by the inauguration of the Centre of Excellence, marking the formal commencement of collaborative research activities.
C-DOT has already engaged with WISIG a startup incubated at IIT Hyderabad for the development and deployment of disaggregated 5G O-RAN solutions. Building on this foundation, the CoE will further support startups, facilitate intellectual property creation, and promote continuous knowledge exchange through workshops, training programs, and collaborative academic–industry engagements. This initiative is expected to significantly enhance India’s position in global telecom innovation and contribute to building a robust, self-reliant digital ecosystem.
During the occasion, Dr. Rajkumar Upadhyay also delivered a lecture on “Building Indigenous Communications Technologies for Viksit Bharat,” highlighting India’s telecom landscape, Bharat 6G Vision, evolving telecom value chains, global standards, and emerging opportunities which was attended by students, research scholars, and faculty of IIT Hyderabad. He also highlighted C-DOT’s indigenous solutions spanning 4G/5G technologies, TRINETRA cybersecurity suite, secure quantum communications (QKD & PQC), disaster management platform, AI-enabled applications such as Sanchar Saathi and fraud detection systems, as well as Mission Critical Communication (MCX).
Articulating the vision behind this collaboration, Dr. Rajkumar Upadhyay, CEO, C-DOT, stated, “The establishment of this Centre of Excellence is a strategic step towards creating a robust innovation pipeline for next-generation communication technologies in India. By integrating cutting-edge academic research with real-world deployment capabilities, we aim to build globally competitive, secure, and scalable telecom solutions that position India as a leader gobally.”
Prof. B. S. Murty, Director, IIT Hyderabad, highlighted the significance of the partnership, stating, “This collaboration marks an important milestone for IIT Hyderabad as we join hands with C-DOT to advance India’s next-generation telecom capabilities. IIT Hyderabad’s strengths in communication engineering, semiconductor technologies, and emerging wireless systems will complement C-DOT’s national mission for secure and indigenous telecom solutions. The CoE will provide a transformative platform for our faculty, researchers, and students to co-develop technologies of strategic importance and contribute to India’s long-term vision of technological leadership.”
This collaboration reflects C-DOT’s continued commitment to advancing indigenous telecom innovation through partnerships with leading academic institutions. By supporting research, developing skilled talent, and enabling next-generation technologies, the initiative will contribute to India’s goal of technological self-reliance and strengthen its position in the global telecom landscape.
About the Author
