The total number of GSM subscribers in the country has gone up to 494 million, with operators adding 12.4 million new users in September, according to data released by the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI).
Of these, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) registered 2.3 million subscriber additions, the highest amongst all the operators during the period, taking its total user base to 72.6 million.
New operator Uninor garnered the second highest number of new users in September, taking its base to over 11.2 million in the 13 circles where its services are commercially available. Uninor added 2.17 million new subscribers, while Bharti Airtel added two million users during the month, taking its total subscriber base to 143.2 million and Vodafone Essar’s subscriber base soared by 1.7 million to 115.5 million at the end of September 2010.
Aircel and Idea Cellular added 1.6 million and 1.4 million new users, respectively, while Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL) saw its user base expand by 35,146 subscribers.
