New Delhi– India’s broadband subscriber base grew by 3.37% in May 2025, reaching 974.87 million, up from 943.09 million in April, according to data released Friday by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).
The data also showed that 14.03 million users submitted requests for mobile number portability (MNP) during the month. The number of active wireless (mobile) subscribers stood at 1.08 billion in May.
Total wireless subscribers—including mobile and 5G fixed wireless access (FWA)—rose from 1.166 billion at the end of April to 1.168 billion by the end of May, marking a modest monthly growth of 0.17%.
Urban wireless subscriptions grew from 633.29 million to 634.91 million, while rural subscriptions edged up from 533.14 million to 533.51 million. The monthly growth rates for urban and rural wireless users were 0.25% and 0.07%, respectively, according to the Ministry of Communications.
India’s overall mobile tele-density increased from 82.01% in April to 82.10% in May. Urban tele-density rose from 123.85% to 124.03%, while rural tele-density inched up from 58.57% to 58.58% during the same period.
As of May 31, urban areas accounted for 54.30% of the country’s wireless subscribers, while rural areas made up 45.70%.
Private telecom operators continued to dominate the market, holding a combined 92.14% share of the wireless subscriber base. Public sector units BSNL and MTNL collectively held 7.86%.
The number of machine-to-machine (M2M) cellular connections also showed strong growth, increasing from 69.87 million in April to 73.91 million in May. (Source: IANS)
