Operators already deployed round 500,000 5G base stations throughout India
In sum – what to know:
1bn 5G customers by 2031 – Subscriptions anticipated to rise from 400 million right now to 1 billion, reaching almost 79% penetration.
Full 5G protection – Round 500,000 base stations deployed, with 5G now accessible in 99.9% of districts.
4G decline accelerates – Customers projected to fall from 600 million in 2025 to 190 million by 2031 as migration to 5G gathers tempo.
India’s telecom sector is on observe to succeed in 1 billion 5G subscribers by 2031, based on the nation’s Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia.
5G providers now cowl 99.9% of India’s districts, supported by roughly 500,000 base transceiver stations (BTSs), the minister added.
Ericsson additionally estimates India will account for 1 billion 5G subscriptions by the tip of 2031, representing a cellular penetration of 79%. The Swedish vendor expects 394 million 5G customers by the tip of this yr, or 32% of whole cellular subscriptions, pushed by increasing protection, reasonably priced 5G gadgets and rising demand for high-speed information.
Whereas 4G stays the biggest phase at about 49% of subscriptions, Ericsson initiatives a pointy decline from roughly 600 million customers in 2025 to round 190 million by 2031, as migration to 5G accelerates. Scindia described the rollout as one of many quickest globally, noting that nationwide protection was achieved inside 22 months of launch.
India’s industrial 5G rollout started in October 2022, with operators initially launching providers in chosen cities earlier than quickly increasing protection nationwide. Native carriers Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio Infocomm have been the primary to introduce 5G providers and every reported reaching 50 million customers inside their first yr of operation. Vodafone Thought adopted later, launching 5G in choose cities throughout 2025. In the meantime, state-run telco BSNL is anticipated to launch 5G providers this yr.
Authorities officers beforehand mentioned that the improve to 5G know-how by BSNL will rely solely on India’s homegrown telecom stack, developed by C-DOT, Tejas Networks, and Tata Consultancy Companies (TCS).
