According to the union minister for communications and development of the north eastern region, India now has the second-largest 5G subscriber base globally, behind only China, and ranks among the fastest adopters of the technology worldwide. He said India is setting global benchmarks in terms of scale, speed and digital transformation.
Since the launch of 5G services in 2022, coverage has expanded across the country, reaching 99.6 per cent of districts and covering about 85 per cent of the population. As of March 2025, telecom service providers (TSPs) had installed around 469,000 5G base transceiver stations (BTSs) nationwide, making it one of the fastest 5G rollouts globally, as per data released by the Ministry of Communications in December 2025. The ministry also said that nearly 250 million mobile users have adopted 5G services since their launch.
On connectivity in remote areas, the ministry highlighted that rural telephone connections grew by 42.9 per cent, nearly double the growth seen in urban areas, increasing from 377.78 million in March 2014 to 539.83 million in September 2025.
Further, India’s internet subscriber base has also crossed the 1 billion mark, compared with 251.5 million in March 2014, representing a growth of 298.77 per cent. Additionally, in line with the Atmanirbhar Bharat vision, it added that the large-scale rollout of home-grown telecom network infrastructure has gathered significant momentum.
