Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi

New Delhi, May 29: India’s telecommunications sector saw a steady rise in user base during April, with total telephone subscribers increasing from 1,200.80 million in March to 1,203.84 million, reflecting a monthly growth of 0.25 per cent, according to data released by the Ministry of Communications.

Urban telephone subscriptions grew modestly from 666.11 million to 667.19 million, while rural subscriptions saw a more noticeable increase from 534.69 million to 536.65 million. This translated to monthly growth rates of 0.16 per cent and 0.37 per cent for urban and rural areas, respectively.

The number of wireless subscribers, which includes mobile and 5G Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) connections, rose from 1,163.76 million to 1,166.43 million, marking a 0.23 per cent rise. Wireless subscriptions in urban regions inched up from 632.57 million to 633.29 million, while rural areas recorded a stronger jump from 531.18 million to 533.14 million. The monthly growth rates in these segments were 0.11 per cent and 0.37 per cent, respectively.

Tele-density, which measures the number of phone connections per 100 people, saw a slight overall increase from 85.04 per cent in March to 85.19 per cent in April. Urban tele-density barely changed, rising from 131.45 per cent to 131.46 per cent, whereas rural tele-density moved from 59.06 per cent to 59.26 per cent.

As of April 30, private telecom operators held a dominant 92.08 per cent share of the wireless market, while state-run BSNL and MTNL accounted for the remaining 7.92 per cent.

In the machine-to-machine (M2M) communication space, Bharti Airtel emerged as the market leader with 37.28 million connections, giving it a 53.35 per cent share. Vodafone Idea followed in the rankings.

April also saw a high level of user mobility, with 13.48 million subscribers submitting requests for mobile number portability (MNP), underlining continued demand for service flexibility and competition in the telecom sector.