Airtel Tops Subscriber Additions In January As Vodafone Idea, BSNL See Losses: TRAI Data

Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd. and Bharti Airtel Ltd. added mobile subscribers in January, while Vodafone Idea Ltd. and Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. continued to report net user losses, according to data released by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India on Monday.

The wireless broadband data for Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel in January is based on the last reported figures for November 2024, as both operators did not submit updated subscriber numbers in the required format for the past two months, TRAI said.

Bharti Airtel led additions during the month with a net gain of 16.5 lakh users, followed by Jio, which added 6.86 lakh subscribers. Vodafone Idea lost 13.4 lakh users, while BSNL lost 1.52 lakh.

The total number of broadband subscribers rose slightly to 9,451.6 lakh at the end of January from 9,449.6 lakh at the end of December, marking a marginal growth rate of 0.04%.

As of Jan. 31, 2025, Reliance Jio Infocomm continued to lead the wireless broadband market, followed by Bharti Airtel Ltd., Vodafone Idea, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd., and Intech Online.

Vodafone Idea’s broadband user base remained at 12.64 crore in January. BSNL’s subscriber base slipped to 3.15 crore in January from 3.16 crore in December. Intech Online remained a marginal player with 0.89 lakh users.

Together, these five providers accounted for 99.98% of the wireless broadband market in India.

India’s total wireless subscriber base increased to 115.13 crore at the end of January from 115.07 crore in December, reflecting a monthly growth rate of 0.05%.

Private access service providers, including Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea, continued to dominate the market with a combined share of 91.96%. State-run operators BSNL and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd. together held 8.04% as of Jan. 31.