A comprehensive survey carried out by the Ministry of Statistics, reported on Thursday, indicates that almost 96.8% of those between 15 and 29 years old living in rural India employed mobile phones for at least one instance in the last three months for private calls or internet use.
Urban areas have a higher proportion of mobile phone use from the same age group, which is approximated at 97.6%.
In terms of smartphone ownership, close to 95.5% of rural youngsters own a smartphone, whereas in urban areas it is approximately 97.6%.
The study named 'Results of Comprehensive Modular Survey: Telecom, 2025' also states that almost 99.5% of 15-29-year-olds, who said they could conduct online banking transactions, use UPI (Unified Payments Interface) as the preferable mode.
Throughout India, around 85.5% of homes possess a least one smartphone, and 86.3% of homes possess internet connectivity within their premises.
Returning to youth between 15-29, roughly 97.1% reported using a mobile phone—smartphones included—over the past three months prior to the survey.
In addition, 85.1% of this age group mentioned sending messages, emails, or SMS with attachments such as documents, images, or videos through mobile phones or computers during the same period.
The survey was conducted all over the Indian Union except for a few inaccessible villages in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
In all, 4,382 first-stage units (FSUs) were surveyed across the country—2,395 rural areas and 1,987 urban places.
In addition, the survey covered 34,950 households, which included 19,071 rural and 15,879 urban households. Overall, 142,065 persons were counted, of whom 82,573 belonged to rural areas and 59,492 were from urban localities.
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