New Delhi, May 21 -- India's smart grid modernisation push under the Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS) has crossed another milestone, with Bengaluru-based Comminent and U.S semiconductor firm Silicon Labs announcing shipments of over 500,000 Wi-SUN-compliant communication modules for smart grid deployments in the country.
The milestone highlights the rapid buildout of communication infrastructure underpinning India's large-scale smart meter rollout-one of the world's biggest utility modernisation programmes. Powered by Silicon Labs' EFR32FG28 Wireless SoC, the modules support utility-grade wireless mesh networks used in Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) deployments.
The announcement comes as India formalises Wi-SUN as a core communication standard for smart meter networks. The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) recently adopted the global Wi-SUN Field Area Network (FAN) specification as the national standard under IS 18010, paving the way for interoperable and secure wireless communication across large utility networks.
Industry executives say standardisation is becoming increasingly critical as utilities seek real-time monitoring capabilities and stronger grid resilience.
"India's smart metering transformation is setting a global benchmark for large-scale Wi-SUN deployments, and Comminent's 500,000-unit milestone is a testament to what's possible when the right technology meets the right partner," Chad Steider, Senior Product Marketing Manager at Silicon Labs, told TechCircle. Steider said India's utility environment has shaped technology requirements around reliability and security. "The EFR32FG28's dual-band architecture and Secure Vault technology were purpose-built for demanding field environments, making it the ideal foundation for India's RDSS-driven grid modernisation," he said.
The development reflects a broader shift in India's utility strategy, where communication infrastructure is becoming central to smart grid architecture rather than an enabling layer. Technologies such as Wi-SUN are expected to support millions of connected endpoints as utilities move toward predictive operations, real-time visibility and self-healing networks.
Amarjeet Kumar, founder and chief executive officer of Comminent, said the scale of India's rollout requires communication networks designed specifically for utility environments. "India's smart metering rollout is one of the largest infrastructure transformations, and this milestone reflects the growing shift toward scalable, utility-grade communication networks like Wi-SUN," Kumar said.
For Silicon Labs, India is emerging as a strategic market as smart utility deployments accelerate. Steider said the adoption of Wi-SUN as a national standard creates a foundation for mass-scale expansion. "As Wi-SUN becomes the national standard under IS 18010, we're proud to be the silicon backbone enabling secure, interoperable mesh networks that will connect millions of endpoints across the country," he said.
As RDSS deployments scale, technology companies increasingly see India not only as a large-volume market but also as a proving ground for utility communication systems that could eventually be exported globally.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from TechCircle.