Dr. Devesh Tyagi, CEO, NIXI
A TWO DECADE LONG JOURNEY
For over two decades, NIXI has been working to enable safe, secure, efficient, sustainable and inclusive internet in the country. It initially began as an Internet exchange service provider, following which two more services were added - .IN Registry and IRINN (Indian Registry for Internet Names and Numbers). In the area of .in domain, NIXI is supporting India’s digital identity with over 4.25 million active domains, and is making steady progress towards achieving the figure of 50 lakhs .IN domains.
When it comes to the country code top-level domain (ccTLD), NIXI is among the top ten nations globally.
ROLE OF NIXI IN INDIA’S DIGITAL ECOSYSTEM
Across India, NIXI has set up 77 Internet Exchange Points (IXPs) enabling local data routing between ISPs. This reduces foreign bandwidth use, lowers latency, and boosts internet resilience with reliable infrastructure, even during disruptions. Under the guidance of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), NIXI is in the process of developing more exchange points to take care of the needs of the entire country.
NIXI is also offering domain names in 22 Indian languages to improve access for non-English users with the aim of achieving the vision of ‘Internet for all’.
“As of June 2025, India has 974 million internet users. We believe that the next wave of internet users in India will be non-English speakers,” says Dr. Devesh Tyagi, CEO, NIXI. “The initiative for having domains and websites in vernacular languages is aimed at curbing the digital divide by making the internet inclusive.”
IRINN is providing allocation and registration services of Internet Protocol addresses - IPv4 & IPv6 throughout the country. NIXI supports Tier 1 and 2 networks, local traffic management, and digital autonomy by handling IP registry operations. It promotes IPv6 adoption by providing near- free IPv6 allocations with IPv4 blocks.
KEY INITIATIVES TAKEN
NIXI has taken up several initiatives to facilitate an inclusive internet ecosystem in India. One of the key achievements of NIXI is India’s leadership in IPv6 adoption.
“NIXI has also prioritized the .in domain, aiming to reach a target of 5 million users,” explains Dr. Devesh Tyagi. “The .in domain not only promotes India’s national digital identity but also plays an important role in enabling secure digital governance, especially for government departments, public service portals, educational institutions and Indian businesses. Through the NIXI Academy, the organization delivers expert training and sensitization courses in areas such as IPv6 adoption, digital literacy and best cybersecurity practices.”
To enhance cybersecurity in the financial sector, the Reserve Bank of India has mandated that all banks migrate their net banking websites to the exclusive “.bank.in” domain. To operationalize this domain, the Institute for Development and Research in Banking Technology has been designated as the exclusive registrar by NIXI under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY). This move ensures regulated access, robust verification and improved security for all participating banks.
FUTURE ROADMAP
NIXI plans to expand its digital infrastructure to rural and semi-urban areas by setting up additional IXPs. It will continue to promote wider IPv6 adoption which will be supported by awareness initiatives and technical training via NIXI Academy. Efforts are also underway to increase the adoption of .in and .Hkkjr domains in regional languages to enhance digital inclusivity and support local internet access.
NIXI is also formulating an internet resilience policy to ensure uninterrupted access to critical digital services, even if global connectivity is disrupted.
Furthermore, SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) certificates in India are being given by foreign players as there are no Web Trust Certified Root CA in India. To bolster India’s cybersecurity landscape and internet resilience, NIXI in close association with the office of the Controller of Certifying Authorities, MeitY is implementing advanced protective measures by establishing infrastructure for the Webtrust-compliant SSL Certifying Authority, for the issuance of SSL certificates for secure and trusted web communications.
Once this project is completed, India’s SSL will be recognized globally.
