National Internet Exchange of India (Nixi) has taken over the role of the National Internet Registry (NIR) for India after successful conclusion of talks between the Asia Pacific Network Information Centre (Apnic) and the government of India. With this, Nixi, the seventh NIR in Asia, would be handling all the internet protocol (IP) addresses across India.

The Indian Registry for Internet Names and Numbers (IRINN), also called NIR, will be run by the National Internet Exchange of India (Nixi) and will serve internet service providers (ISP) within the country. Hitherto the Regional Internet Registry (RIR) for the Asia-Pacific region, Apnic was responsible for the allocation and management of internet resources, including IPv4 and IPv6 addresses, across India. Apnic had given the in-principle approval to Nixi last year.

There are already 6 National Internet Registries in Asia in South Korea, Japan, China, Indonesia, Singapore and Vietnam under Apnic whose jurisdiction covers 56 countries in the Asia Pacific region. Nixi would provide IP address allocation and related services in India, in compliance with regional and global policies. Internet service providers (ISPs) in India would be able to choose either Nixi or Apnic, as their preferred registry to obtain IP addresses. Director general of Apnic, Paul Wilson, said, “The NIR will streamline access to resources for current or future network administrators and will assist the Indian internet that is currently experiencing a period of extraordinary growth”.