India’s telecom sector saw growth and technological progress in 2025. The 5G network saw an expansion of coverage, the data centre sector saw explosive growth, the BharatNet rural fibre roll-out accelerated, and satellite operators geared up for launches.
The infrastructure ecosystem witnessed faster tower and fibre deployment, renewed momentum in rural broadband, and a focus on indoor coverage in public infrastructure. International connectivity also received a boost as multiple high-capacity subsea cable systems were landed in India.
But one of the most important developments occurred in late January 2026, rather than in 2025. India’s telecom market, which had been edging towards a duopoly for years, suddenly saw structural transformation as Vodafone Idea (Vi) received massive relief from the Supreme Court. Vi had been struggling to service its adjusted gross revenue dues, which amounted to Rs 876.95 billion (as of December 31, 2025). The dues were frozen by the court, which cleared a staggered, back-ended repayment schedule. This gives Vi the breathing space it needs to be a competitive entity again.
Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel remain the market leaders, and it will be hard for Vi to catch up. However, that is no longer impossible, and a market with three strong competitors is structurally much healthier than a duopoly. All three private operators have managed to boost their average revenue per user through 2025-26 and are now operationally profitable. (Vi’s net losses are due to its massive interest burden, which will now ease.)
The launch of satellite broadband services in 2026 could dramatically expand the market. Three operators, including SpaceX with its world-leading Starlink service, have global mobile personal communication by satellite licences. The other two licence holders are Bharti Airtel-backed Eutelsat OneWeb and Reliance Jio’s wholly owned subsidiary Jio Satellite Communications Limited.
Starlink is exploring tie-ups, and Airtel has entered into an agreement with SpaceX. Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) also has satellite ambitions in partnership with Viasat India. Indian operators and integrators are working on developing satellite infrastructure, user terminals and network integration capabilities.
It is hard for conventional terrestrial networks to offer coverage across large parts of India, with its mountainous terrain, heavily forested regions and far-flung archipelagos. By some estimates, a third of India’s population lives in places where network coverage is spotty or non-existent. Satellite broadband can solve this engineering riddle and, as it does so, the market will expand sharply as a range of digitally driven services become available to hundreds of millions who currently do not have adequate connectivity.
Exactly how the satcom market will pan out is not clear. Affordability will be crucial, as well as technology for users to switch easily between satcom and 5G. Policy and regulatory discussions (including heated arguments!) continue about the assignment and pricing of satellite spectrum, the tenure and reviewability of spectrum rights, and the need to ensure a level playing field for satellite-based and terrestrial service providers. However, there is little doubt that satcom services of some description will be available soon, and this will drive a surge in broadband usage. The downstream benefits will be quite significant.
On other technological fronts, the buzz around artificial intelligence (AI) is now translating into large investments in data centres. Given 5G and internet of things (IoT) devices needing ultra-low latency, rising cloud use, etc., the load on digital infrastructure has spiked. India’s data centre sector now looks more like a regional hub than just another market. “AI-ready” is the common theme with data centres and campuses built for high-density AI and high-performance computing.
The installed co-location capacity crossed 1.5 GW in 2025, with over 300 MW added in 2025. By 2032, the capacity could reach 7.5-7.8 GW, with 6 GW more to come online after 2032. The industry is geographically spread out, with places such as Mumbai, Chennai, Delhi-NCR, Pune, Kolkata, Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam in focus. Growth is not limited to big cities.
Visakhapatnam has commitments from Sify-Meta, Google and Digital Connexion. Further, there are new facilities in Patna and Lucknow, as well as planned centres in GIFT City (Ahmedabad), Bhubaneswar, Guwahati and Jaipur.
Policy support is forthcoming, with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology working on the National Data Centre Policy, which proposes, among other things, to offer a 20-year tax holiday linked to capacity, power usage effectiveness and job creation. The Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, and its 2025 Rules, set the basic standards for cross-border transfers, supporting local storage and processing. Many states now have data centre policies, and competition to attract investments is intense.
Local giants such as Tata Consultancy Services, Airtel, Reliance and the Adani Group are now in the data centre space, along with specialised data centre operators and hyperscalers. Global players are also moving in. Google’s largest-ever investment in India is a $15 billion plan to develop an AI-focused data centre in Visakhapatnam. Amazon Web Services has committed Rs 600 billion to expand its data centre infrastructure in Hyderabad. Meta has partnered with Sify Technologies on a 500 MW data centre in Andhra Pradesh, with Meta to invest about $1.7 billion. Microsoft also has plans to invest $17.5 billion during 2026-29 in AI cloud capacity.
Equipment makers and network providers are responding to the growing data centre demand with new products and innovations. Over the past six years, India has secured nearly $94 billion in overseas investment commitments in the sector. Power and other supporting infrastructure are critical for these plans to come to fruition. Electricity demand from data centres is expected to rise by multiples of at least five, from 13 TWh in 2024 to 57 TWh by 2030.
Renewables and cleaner energy solutions are important for achieving cost and climate goals, with the green transition under way across supply chains. Tower companies, equipment manufacturers and operators are all focused on reducing fossil fuel consumption and improving energy efficiency. Reflecting this trend, Sterlite Technologies is using green hydrogen for decarbonising optical fibre production.
International connectivity saw major subsea cable landings and system upgrades. In February 2025, Bharti Airtel landed the SEA-ME-WE 6 system in Chennai. In March 2025, Airtel landed 2Africa Pearls in Mumbai. Reliance Jio’s India-Asia-Xpress system saw the Sri Lanka branch becoming active. In June 2025, Tata Communications strengthened its intra-Asia routes with the launch of TGN-IA2.
BSNL’s 4G expansion has helped push coverage across underserved pockets, while private operators and tower companies are strengthening the passive layer. A policy push to streamline right-of-way (RoW) approvals through uniform rules and portal-based processes aims to remove friction that slows down projects.
Tower companies are increasing fiberisation to improve network quality, while urban small cells are being built, and in-building penetration across metros and airports continues to be improved. The National Broadband Mission (NBM) 2.0 sets steeper targets for village and institutional connectivity, while the Amended BharatNet Programme (ABP) is also moving apace.
BSNL’s long-delayed 4G network expansion has materially increased tower installation, even as the intensity of 5G roll-out eases. Vi is looking to raise funds to support its 5G roll-out, while Jio and Airtel have more or less completed their respective roll-outs. BharatNet remains the backbone of rural broadband creation, and the programme has accelerated under the ABP (Phase III), with an approved outlay of
Rs 1.39 trillion and a completion timeline of 36 months.
On January 1, 2025, the Telecommunications (Right of Way) Rules, 2024 became operational, and it has made a big practical difference. However, frictions persist, particularly where public infrastructure owners control access. One learning is that formal rules must be backed by implementation across all municipal and other authorities.
NBM 2.0 aims to scale up high speed broadband and expand fibre connectivity to 270,000 villages by 2030 with 95 per cent uptime, and broadband access to 90 per cent of anchor institutions. It also targets improvements in broadband speeds. The mission emphasises coordinated implementation across ministries, states, union territories and municipal bodies.
Indoor coverage is another focus area across airports, metros, large commercial spaces and high-density public areas. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has unveiled the “Rating of Properties for Digital Connectivity” framework and begun registering digital connectivity rating agencies to audit properties and assign star ratings based on in-building signal quality,
fibre readiness and supporting infrastructure. The ratings highlight that a lot of mobile usage takes place indoors and that all new buildings should include digital
connectivity planning at the design stage.
One area of friction remains the neutral host versus the direct telco deployment model. At Noida International Airport, for example, private telcos sought permission to deploy in-building systems directly, and a similar debate also played out around Mumbai Metro Line 3’s underground coverage. The Prime Minister Wi-Fi Access Network Interface initiative continues to expand as a last-mile access layer.
The past year has been good for the telecom sector, which now looks poised for another phase of steep growth as new technologies come into play. Apart from generating employment and downstream activity, the competitive intensity of a three-firm services market will benefit
users and consumers.
Policy implementation will play a big role in shaping 2026. Faster RoW clearances,
the rapid launch of satellite broadband and smooth data centre roll-outs all depend on this. Alongside, sustainability must also be maintained and improved. Overall, in 2025, the telecom sector and related segments such as data centres did not just add capacity, they also laid the groundwork for the next phase of growth.
Devangshu Datta
