India's 5G services have been rolled out in all states and Union Territories, reaching 773 of the country's 776 districts, including Lakshadweep, according to the government's report to Parliament on Wednesday.
Minister of State for Communications and Rural Development Chandra Sekhar Pemmasani told the Lok Sabha in a written reply that, up to February 28, telecom service providers (TSPs) have deployed 4.69 lakh 5G Base Transceiver Stations (BTSs) across the country.
TSPs have greatly extended 5G coverage beyond the mandatory rollout requirements of the Notice Inviting Application (NIA) for spectrum auctions. The minister added that extending mobile services beyond these requirements would be subject to the commercial and technological considerations of the operators.
In support of the 5G rollout, the government has initiated several major initiatives such as spectrum auctions for 5G services, financial reforms for simplifying Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR) calculations, and BGs and interest rate rationalization. The Spectrum Usage Charges have also been withdrawn for the spectrum purchased in the 2022 auction and onwards.
These include streamlining the clearance mechanism for the Standing Advisory Committee on Radio Frequency Allocations (SACFA), rolling out the PM GatiShakti Sanchar portal, and promoting the Right of Way (RoW) Rules to allow rapid approvals for telco infrastructure deployment. Time-bound permissions have been enforced by the government for making use of street furniture for hosting small cells and telecommunication cable lines.
The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) pointed out that India's telecom industry is growing at a fast pace, both within the country and internationally, with immense scope for growth.
Today, the nation boasts about 1,187 million telecom subscribers, with tele-density in urban areas reaching a whopping 131.01%, whereas rural regions are at 58.31%. The rollout of 5G is speeding up at a rapid rate, fueled by innovations in artificial intelligence (AI), localized data centers, and the use of native data sets.
Read also| Jio Partners with SpaceX to Launch Starlink Internet Services in India
Read also| India's Broadband Subscribers Reach 944.96 Million in December 2024: Government Report
