Bharti Airtel steps up FY18 investemnt to Rs 25,000 cr to expand 4G network

Launching its services just over a year ago Jio has disrupted the world's second-biggest wireless market by customers with its cut-price offerings

Bharti Airtel Ltd said on Wednesday it was looking to spend Rs 25,000 crore ($3.9 billion) this financial year on its networks, a quarter more than its initial forecast and mainly to speed up the expansion of its 4G mobile broadband network in India.

The boost in capital expenditure comes at a time when the Indian market leader is facing stiff competition from Reliance Jio, operator of the entirely new 4G network which cost owner Reliance Industries about $30 billion to build.

Launching its services just over a year ago Jio has disrupted the world’s second-biggest wireless market by customers with its