Pune Links Connectivity With Inclusive Digital Growth
India and Brazil are using the BRICS communications dialogue in Pune to deepen cooperation on telecommunications, digital infrastructure and emerging technologies, with digital public infrastructure and secure connectivity emerging as key areas. The engagement comes as both countries seek to expand digital access while making networks more resilient, affordable and useful for citizens across large and geographically diverse populations.
The current bilateral telecom dialogue follows a meeting between the two countries’ communications ministers in February, when India and Brazil agreed to intensify structured cooperation in areas including 5G applications, 6G, quantum communications, cybersecurity and digital infrastructure. The two sides said a formal memorandum of understanding would provide a framework for that engagement. The timing gives the discussions added significance. Pune is hosting the BRICS ICT Track from August 17 to 21, bringing together officials and technology experts around resilient digital systems, cybersecurity, future networks, digital skills and inclusive connectivity. Digital public infrastructure has been a specific focus of the working-group discussions, with BRICS members examining interoperability, privacy, cybersecurity and citizen-centred digital services. For cities and rural communities, the value of such cooperation will depend on whether digital systems translate into easier access to public services rather than simply greater technology deployment. Digital identity, payments and online government services can reduce administrative barriers, but they also create new responsibilities around data protection, accessibility and protection from fraud.
Connectivity remains an equally important challenge. Brazil and India both cover vast territories where conventional fibre and mobile infrastructure can be costly to extend. Future networks, satellite systems and other non-terrestrial technologies could help reach underserved areas, although affordability, reliability and energy use will remain important tests before such systems can deliver broad social value. Cybersecurity is also becoming an urban infrastructure issue. As more public services, financial transactions and essential systems move online, disruption can affect households, businesses and local governments simultaneously. Cooperation on security standards, digital skills and public awareness could therefore strengthen resilience, provided safeguards are built into systems from the outset. The environmental cost of digital expansion deserves similar attention. Data centres, telecom equipment and network operations require electricity and physical resources. Greater deployment will need to be accompanied by efficient equipment, renewable power where feasible, longer equipment lifecycles and infrastructure sharing if digital growth is to avoid adding unnecessary pressure to urban energy systems.
The broader BRICS agenda is already moving towards practical cooperation on digital public infrastructure and resilient ICT ecosystems. For India and Brazil, the next measure of progress will be implementation: whether technical cooperation improves access, protects users and strengthens networks without making the digital transition more expensive or environmentally demanding for the communities it is intended to serve.
