(File photo)

NEW DELHI: Ahead of Chinese president Xi Jinping's visit to India, the government has allowed controversial Chinese telecom equipment maker Huawei to participate in the 5G use case demos during the India Mobile Congress (IMC) that begins in the capital next week (October 14 and October 16).

However, the government has not yet taken any final decision on participation of the company in the upcoming wider and broad-based 5G trials that give an opportunity to companies to showcase their technological prowess more effectively.

It is understood that Huawei will present the use cases in partnership with Airtel and Vodafone-Idea, the two telecom operators with which it enjoys very deep relationships. "The company has received permission, and we are hopeful to see demos that show us benefits of migrating to a 5G regime," an official source told TOI.

Participation of Huawei in 5G demos is being seen with suspicion, since the government has not yet given any go-ahead to participation of the company in 5G trails. "It will be incorrect to link this permission to trials. That is a different matter and is being considered separately. No decision has been made on the trials so far," the source said.

When contacted, Huawei expressed happiness at being given a go-ahead for IMC. "We are thankful to the Indian government for its continued trust and support towards Huawei. We believe it is the expectation of the industry that all vendors and participants should come to this premier show with their latest solutions showcase. This is also the format on which IMC has been designed. We will continue to collectively showcase our leading solutions along with all other participants to make IMC a success," Jay Chen, CEO of Huawei India , said.

It is believed that the government has said that all telecom equipment vendors, including Nokia and Ericsson, should share the 5G spectrum with each other. "Industry body COAI will coordinate this sharing, and this should be done without any discrimination."

