India had 792.8 million wireless and wireline broadband connections at the end of June 2021, an increase of 2% over a three-month period, according to data published by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). Narrowband connections declined by 13% this quarter from 47.2 million connections reported in March 2021. There are still 40.9 million narrowband connections in the country.
TRAI defines Internet connections with download speeds less than 512 kbps as narrowband, while connections with download speeds more than 512 kbps are broadband. It’s worth noting that TRAI had recommended redefining the minimum broadband speed to 2 Mbps.
The total of 833.7 million Internet connections includes both wired (broadband: 22.75 million; narrowband: 0.06 million) and wireless connections (broadband: 769.26 million; narrowband: 40.88 million). A majority of these Internet connections are on mobile.
Between April and June 2021, total broadband connections increased by 5.2% in rural areas and declined marginally in urban areas. Broadband forms a 95% share of the total connections while narrowband forms the remaining 5% of total connections.
Key observations
1. Delhi had the highest number of broadband connections in an urban area with 41.49 million, followed by Maharashtra with 39.96 million, and Tamil Nadu with 38.92 million connections.
2. Bihar had the highest number of broadband connections in a rural area with 33.32 million, followed by Uttar Pradesh (East) with 32.5 million connections, and Maharashtra with 28.28 million connections.
3. Maharashtra (excluding Mumbai) had the highest number of broadband connections in the country with 68.24 million connections. Andhra Pradesh is in the second spot with 61.38 million connections, followed by UP (East) with 59.38 million connections.
4. Broadband connections in hilly states such as Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, and the northeast region including Assam are still very low with a total of just 39.26 million connections.
5. UP (East) added the highest number of broadband connections in rural areas with 2.2 million connections between April and June 2021. In urban areas, Mumbai topped the list by adding 0.9 million connections during the same time period.
6. Overall, UP (East) added the most connections during the three-month period with 2.5 million connections.
Also Read:
- With Broadband Connections Up By 4%, India Crosses 800 Million Internet Subscribers
- Summary: TRAI Recommendations For Broadband Speed And Connectivity
- Hughes And Bharti-Backed OneWeb To Provide Satellite Broadband In Remote Areas
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