India is still not keen to allow in-flight Wi-Fi

Air travelers in India will have to make do with no Wi-Fi connectivity on planes for now as the government continues to have security concerns.

Back in August, aviation secretary R. N. Choubey had revealed that the Indian government will announce a set of reforms to let airlines offer in-flight Wi-Fi on all flights over Indian airspace. The announcement was supposed to happen within 10 days but nearly two months later, the government is yet to make any such announcement.

The Indian government has reportedly put the decision on hold because of security concerns, according to BloombergQuint. India doesn’t permit Wi-Fi services on domestic flights out of security concerns. In-flight Wi-Fi is perceived as a security threat because of difficulty in tracking voice and data usage from the air. International flights are also required to turn off internet services during the time they are in Indian airspace.

Earlier this month, India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation told PTI that they were studying the matter. “The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is studying the matter to make sure that all considerations are adequately addressed and as soon as that is done, we will issue a statement,” Jayant Sinha, minister of state for civil aviation had said.

The remarks by Choubey in August had also piqued interest from airlines and air authorities. A representative of Inmarsat told the publication that they are "keeping a very keen eye on movement around the regulatory environment".

The government of India became wary of internet services on planes after the hijacking of an Indian airlines plane on its way to Delhi from Kathmandu on December 24, 1999, according to a senior ministry official.