Jio adds 5.5 mn users in June; Vodafone Idea sheds 4.3 mn customers

Overall telephone subscribers in India rose from 1,198.5 million at the end of May 2021 to 1,202.57 million the following month, up 0.34%

Reliance Jio added 5.5 million subscribers to its network in June, followed by Bharti Airtel with 3.8 million users, while Vodafone Idea continued with its losing streak by shedding another 4.3 million customers in the reporting period, as per latest data by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).

Overall telephone subscribers in India increased from 1,198.50 million at the end of May 2021 to 1,202.57 million at the end of June 2021, a monthly growth rate of 0.34 per cent.

According to the data, Urban telephone subscriptions increased from 661.18 million at the end of May 2021 to 666.10 million at the end of June 2021, however, the rural subscription decreased from 537.32 million to 536.47 million during the same period. The monthly growth rates of urban and rural telephone subscriptions were 0.74 per cent and -0.16 per cent respectively during the month of June 2021.

The overall tele-density in India increased from 87.84 per cent at the end of May 2021 to 88.07 per cent at the end of June 2021.

Urban tele-density increased from 140.04 per cent at the end of May 2021 to 140.86 per cent at the end of June 2021, however Rural Tele-density decreased from 60.22 per cent to 60.10 per cent during the same period. The share of urban and rural subscribers in the total number of telephone subscribers at the end of June 2021 was 55.39 per cent and 44.61 per cent respectively.

As on June 30, 2021, the private access service providers held 89.95 per cent market share of the wireless subscribers whereas BSNL and MTNL, the two PSU access service providers, had a market share of only 10.05 per cent.

During the month of June 2021, a total of 12.27 million requests were received for MNP (mobile number portability). Out of total 12.27 million new requests, 7.31 million requests received from Zone-I and 4.95 million requests received from Zone-II. The cumulative MNP requests increased from 593.61 million at the end of May 2021 to 605.88 million at the end of June 2021, since the implementation of MNP.

The number of active wireless subscribers in May was 986.11 million.

The total wireless subscribers decreased from 1,183.11 million at the end of April to 1,176.84 million at the end of May, thereby registering a monthly decline rate of 0.53 per cent.

Wireless subscription in urban areas decreased from 645.62 million at the end of April to 641.48 million at the end of May. Wireless subscriptions in rural areas also decreased from 537.49 million to 535.36 million during the same period.

The monthly decline rates of urban and rural wireless subscription were 0.64 per cent and 0.40 per cent, respectively.

The wireless teledensity in India decreased from 86.78 per cent at the end of April to 86.25 per cent at the end of May.

The urban wireless tele-density decreased from 136.96 per cent at the end of April to 135.86 per cent at the end of May. The rural tele-density also decreased from 60.26 per cent to 60 per cent during the same period.

The share of urban and rural wireless subscribers in the total number of wireless subscribers was 54.51 per cent and 45.49 per cent, respectively, at the end of May.