Vodafone invests Rs 450 cr in two circles in 2014-15

Funnels Rs 250 crore for ramping up network and distribution in Bihar and Jharkhand

Vodafone India has invested over Rs 450 crore in two of its circles to improve its telecom services.

"It has invested over Rs 250 crore on ramping up network and distribution in Bihar and Jharkhand circle. While over Rs 200 crore was invested in strengthening the network, retail and distribution in Rajasthan circle," the company said a statement.

Vodafone also expanded its network in Rajasthan to cover 90% of the populationand will continue to make investments to further enhance its distribution andreach.

Both the investmentswere made in 2014-15 fiscal. In Bihar,the company added more than 1,250 mobile sites during the reported period. It now has 2G mobile antennas installed at over 8,700 locations in the state. Vodafone also offers 3G services in Bihar under roaming agreement with other telecom operators.

"This has resulted in data revenue rising significantly at a growth rate of 70 percent year-on-year. Data now contributes to 7% of the total servicerevenues in the circle (Bihar)," the statement said.

The totalsubscriber base of Vodafone reached around 85 lakh in Bihar and Jharkhand withthe addition of over 11.7 lakh subscribers in the last 12 months, the statementadded. In Rajasthan, the company is focusing on enhancing retail presence in abid to boost sales.

"Pursuingan aggressive retail growth strategy in Rajasthan, Vodafone has alreadylaunched 9 Vodafone Stores and 50 Vodafone Mini Stores in the last 12 months.Today with over 670 stores, Vodafone has consolidated its position as thelargest exclusive retail footprint in Rajasthan," it said.

Under itsretail expansion plan, Vodafone has launched over 160 Vodafone stores and morethan 1000 mini stores across India in the last fiscal. "Today, with over 9,800stores, Vodafone has the largest exclusive retail footprint in telecom in thecountry," the statement added.