FSID, FITT, C-DAC partner to develop open-source telecom solutions for 5G, 6G

The Foundation for Science Innovation and Development (FSID) at IISc Bengaluru, the Foundation for Innovation and Technology Transfer (FITT) at IIT Delhi, and the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) have signed a collaboration agreement to create and support production-grade open-source codebase for the development of fifth-generation (5G), 5G-Advanced, and 6G mobile networks.

The initiative is backed by seed funding from the Ministry of Electronics & IT (MeitY), and builds on the Indian Open-Source Platform for End-to-End 5G Network (IOS-5GN), according to a joint statement.

The pact has further laid the foundation for the development of the Indian Open-Source Platform for Mobile Communication Networks (IOS-MCN), an academia-industry consortium aimed at accelerating indigenous 5G and future technology development.

The consortium includes FSID, FITT and the C-DAC as strategic partners, with 16 other industry partners from the research and development, telecom, startup, and academic sectors.

Under the agreement, the three core partners will pool their strengths in research, technology development, and commercialisation to jointly lead the IOS-MCN Operating Committee. This committee will oversee project execution, technical direction, partner engagement, and administrative operations.

IOS-MCN aims to develop a fully open-source, production-grade mobile network stack that conforms with the global 3GPP and Open Radio Access Network (O-RAN) standards.

The Governing Board of IOS-MCN comprises strategic and industry partners such as the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DoT), homegrown gear maker Tejas Networks, and 5G telecom software validation firm Simnovus.

A distributed team of over 70 technical experts is currently working on the IOS-MCN codebase.

On January 31, 2025, the consortium released the IOS-MCN Agartala v0.1.0. The release includes Open RAN-compliant radio access network software, a service orchestration framework, and a 5G Core—tested successfully with two Made in India ORAN-compliant radio units developed by VVDN Technologies and Lekha Wireless.

The system has demonstrated downlink data rates of 600–700 Mbps and a latency of under 10 milliseconds using commercial mobile devices, as per the statement.

“The partnership will drive impactful innovation, bridging academia and industry to accelerate next-generation telecom solutions,” said Balan Gurumoorthy, director of FSID.

“This collaboration marks a significant step towards self-reliance in telecom infrastructure. By leveraging open-source technologies, we aim to create cost-effective and globally competitive 5G and 6G solutions,” said Nikhil Agarwal, managing director of FITT.

“Through this initiative, we are laying the foundation for an open, scalable, and resilient mobile communication network, fostering indigenous R&D and reducing reliance on proprietary technologies,” said Kalai Selvan A, director and centre head of C-DAC (T).