India Mobile Congress 2018 to be held between October 25 and 27

The second edition of India Mobile Congress will be hosted DoT and COAI with participants from ASEAN and BIMSTEC.

India Mobile Congress 2018 would feature over 1,300 exhibitors. (Hindustan Times)

After debuting successfully in 2017, India is going to host its second India Mobile Congress (IMC) between October 25-27 here, Communications Minister Manoj Sinha said here on Friday.

"The India Mobile Congress 2018, hosted by the Department of Telecommunications and the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), is an excellent platform for policy makers, industry and regulators to engage in meaningful deliberations to drive the future direction of this important sector," Sinha said while addressing the curtain raiser ceremony of IMC.

"This year, we will also be honoured by the presence of our friends from ASEAN and BIMSTEC which will lend a global connect to our exchanges."

The IMC expects that more than 200,000 professionals from the telecom industry, encompassing the 5G, startup ecosystem, Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Smart Cities, and allied industry sectors will attend India Mobile Congress 2018, the minister said.

The exhibition would feature more than 1,300 exhibitors.

"We are at the cusp of a tectonic shift in human history with the advent of futuristic technologies such as 5G and IoT. India is gearing up to embrace this new digital future with our focus on 5G readiness and the facilitation of new technology adoption across sectors," said Telecom Secretary Aruna Sundararajan.

"We firmly believe that the India Mobile Congress platform will be instrumental in driving this, by bringing together all stakeholders in the Telecommunications and IT ecosystem and providing the right forum for deliberations on the way forward in connectivity solutions."

Sundararajan further said, the focus areas that would be addressed in the IMC 2018 include - "networks of the future, technologies shaping our lives, enhancing consumer experience and last but not the least, startups."

"The initiative to launch thousand apps from the India Mobile Congress platform shall be one of the key highlights of the IMC," she added.

"This year we also intend to bring on board the state governments as states are active partners with us already in Bharat Net."

COAI Director General Rajan S.Mathews said: "With more than 1.2 billion subscribers, mobile now connects the whole of India. It is fuelling innovation, revolutionising industries and spurring exciting new opportunities, across both developed and developing markets."

The first edition of IMC, held in September 2017, was attended by around 2,000 delegates, 32,000 visitors, 152 speakers, 100 exhibitors and 100 startups.