The 5G sites have been installed across 714 districts in India
Telecom operators in India have already installed over 300,000 5G mobile sites nationwide within 10 months of launch of the service, local press reported, citing the country’s union telecom minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.
The 5G sites have been installed across 714 districts in India, according to the report.
Official data showed that 100,000 5G sites were installed within five months and 200,000 sites within eight months of the launch of service.
Last month, Indian operator Reliance Jio Infocomm said it has deployed over 115,000 sites with more than 690,000 5G cells across India. Jio said that the deployed infrastructure enabled the company to provide 5G coverage in over 90% of India’s towns and cities.
The telecom operator is now aiming to conclude its 5G rollout ahead of its earlier target of December 2023.
Reliance Jio Infocomm has been rapidly expanding its 5G network using Standalone (SA) architecture since October 2022. The telco has already deployed its 5G service in 6,258 cities across 36 states in India, according to the carrier’s website.
Reliance Jio had previously secured a mix of wireless spectrum for 5G across 700 MHz, 3.5 GHz, and 26 GHz bands. Jio is the only Indian operator with the 700 MHz low-band spectrum.
Meanwhile, rival operator Bharti Airtel has already deployed 5G across thousands of towns and cities across India. Airtel has opted for Non-Standalone technology (NSA) for its 5G rollout.
Rival operator Vodafone Idea recently confirmed “advanced talks” with a number of vendors in order to define its final strategy for the deployment of 5G in India. In the carrier’s annual report, the telco also said it has concluded device testing of all major OEMs on its upcoming 5G mobile broadband network. The company has partnered with various OEMs to test the compatibility of available 5G handsets in 5G clusters in the cities of Delhi and Pune.
Vodafone previously said it was negotiating loans with local banks in order to secure the necessary funds to launch 5G.
Also, the Indian government previously said that Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) could launch 5G technology in March 2024. The government clarified that initially, BSNL’s 5G network will be based on the NonStandalone (NSA) architecture.
In June, India said it had earmarked a total of INR890 billion ($10.8 billion) for the allotment of spectrum for BSNL to launch nationwide 4G and 5G services. Through this move, the state-owned telco will obtain spectrum in the 700 MHz, 2.5 GHz, 3.3 GHz and 26 GHz bands.
A government statement said that with this spectrum allotment, BSNL will be able to provide pan-India 4G and 5G service, provide 4G coverage in rural regions under various connectivity projects, provide fixed wireless access (FWA) service and offer services or spectrum for private networks.
BSNL recently launched its 4G offering in certain parts of Punjab region, as part of an extended field trial following a proof of concept (PoC) by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS)-led consortium.
“Starting October, there will be a large-scale rollout of BSNL’s 4G network that is expected to be completed in a 12-month timeframe,” according to a top official from the Department of Telecommunications (DoT).
