In Short:
India saw the deployment of 6,696 5G Base Transceiver Stations (BTS) in April 2024, with Bihar, Karnataka, and Uttar Pradesh leading the efforts. States like Lakshadweep and Chandigarh had fewer deployments. Private telcos like Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio offer 5G services at 4G prices, while BSNL is focusing on 4G deployment. Vodafone Idea plans to expand 4G and rollout 5G.
India Witnessed Deployment of Over 6,000 5G BTS During April 2024
India witnessed the deployment of 6,696 5G Base Transceiver Stations (BTS) across various states and union territories (UTs) during April 2024. BTS are the equipment that facilitate wireless communication between user equipment and a network. The latest data reported by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) reveals significant progress in expanding the reach of 5G technology, with Bihar, Karnataka, and Uttar Pradesh leading the deployment efforts.
Top States with 5G Deployments
Bihar, a state in eastern India, recorded an addition of 864 BTS during the said duration. Similarly, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, and Gujarat witnessed significant growth in 5G infrastructure expansion, with BTS additions of 709, 699, and 611 respectively. Among other notable contributors to the 5G infrastructure expansion, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, and Assam reported increase with BTS additions of 424, 397, and 332 respectively.
5G BTS Deployed in April 2024
| Sl. No | State/UT | BTS as on 31 Mar 2024 | BTS as on 30 Apr 2024 | BTS Additions in Apr 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bihar | 21647 | 22511 | 864 |
Regions with Less 5G Deployments
While having only two BTS deployments in Lakshadweep is understandable given its small size and population, it’s worth noting that there were no additional deployments in April 2024. Similarly, Andaman and Nicobar Islands had only 115 BTS deployments as of April 30, with no additions during April. With only a minor increase of 2 BTS deployments in April, Chandigarh is also among the regions with slower growth in 5G deployments.
The surge in 5G infrastructure deployment across various states and UTs in India during April 2024 reflects a significant deployment of high-speed and high-capacity networks across the country.
5G in India
The total number of 5G BTS in India surged from 435,720 to 442,416 during April 2024. In India, only private telcos Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio are offering commercial 5G services with no monetary benefits. 5G is offered at 4G pricing and currently Unlimited 5G is offered by both the telcos.
BSNL is currently deploying its 4G, and we are unsure when its 4G service will be available on a PAN India basis. Vodafone Idea (Vi), another private telco which is losing wireless subscribers month on month just like BSNL/MTNL, in a recent email to customers signed by CEO has stated that it will focus on 4G expansion and 5G rollout.
