Mumbai, April 23: Indian telecom giants Bharti Airtel, BSNL, Reliance Jio, and Vodafone Idea (Vi) saw an increase in wireless subscribers in March 2026, while MTNL experienced losses, according to the latest data from TRAI. The total number of wireless subscribers rose from 1,273.31 million at the end of February to 1,282.33 million by the end of March, marking a monthly growth rate of 0.71 percent. Wireless mobile subscribers increased from 1,257.29 million to 1,265.73 million during this period, reflecting a growth rate of 0.67 percent. Additionally, wireless tele-density in India improved from 89.30 percent to 89.88 percent, including M2M cellular mobile connections.
FWA Subscribers — 5G and UBR Breakdown
The total number of wireless 5G FWA subscribers grew from 11.93 million at the end of February to 12.32 million at the end of March. Urban areas accounted for 6.17 million (50.37 percent), while rural areas had 6.15 million (49.63 percent).
As of March 2026, Bharti Airtel reported 3,737,658 5G FWA subscribers, adding 148,514. Reliance Jio had 8,584,110 5G FWA users, with an increase of 241,675, bringing the total to 12,321,768.
Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited was the only operator to report UBR FWA subscribers, increasing its base from 4,086,086 at the end of February to 4,285,595 by the end of March, adding 199,509 users.
“UBR FWA subscriptions reached 4.29 million at the end of March, with urban and rural areas accounting for 3.05 million and 1.23 million, respectively,” the TRAI report stated on April 22, 2026.
Gain and Loss of Wireless Subscribers
Bharti Airtel added 5,094,968 wireless subscribers, while Reliance Jio gained 3,227,542. Vodafone Idea added 102,899 subscribers, and BSNL saw an increase of 17,095. Conversely, MTNL lost 9,065 subscribers during March 2026.
All Licensed Service Areas (LSAs) reported growth in wireless subscribers during this month.
Wireless Market Share of Operators
By the end of March 2026, private access service providers held 92.64 percent of the wireless market, while BSNL and MTNL accounted for 7.36 percent. Reliance Jio led with a 39.21 percent market share and 496.34 million subscribers, followed by Bharti Airtel with 37.74 percent and 477.74 million subscribers. Vodafone Idea held 15.68 percent with 198.48 million subscribers, BSNL had 7.34 percent with 92.94 million, and MTNL had 0.02 percent with 214,967 subscribers.
Wireless (Fixed Wireless and Mobile) Access Broadband Subscribers
As of the end of March 2026, Reliance Jio reported the highest number of wireless broadband subscribers at 509.21 million, followed by Bharti Airtel with 358.13 million, Vodafone Idea with 128.91 million, and BSNL with 22.86 million subscribers.
Wireline Telephone Subscriber Base
The wireline subscriber count increased from 47.99 million at the end of February to 48.25 million by the end of March, reflecting a net increase of 0.25 million and a monthly growth rate of 0.53 percent.
In the wireline segment:
- Reliance Jio held a 31.58 percent market share with 15,237,438 subscribers, adding 188,698 during the month.
- Bharti Airtel accounted for 23.67 percent with approximately 11,419,588 subscribers, adding 23,370.
- Vodafone Idea held around 1.77 percent with about 853,441 subscribers, adding 11,954.
- BSNL had a 15.46 percent market share with around 7.46 million subscribers, adding 47,881.
M2M Cellular Connections
The number of M2M (Machine-to-Machine) cellular connections rose from 118.47 million at the end of February to 123.88 million by the end of March 2026. Bharti Airtel led with 76.99 million M2M connections (62.15 percent market share), followed by Reliance Jio with 23.23 million (18.76 percent), Vodafone Idea with 19.58 million (15.81 percent), and BSNL with 4.06 million (3.28 percent).
Active Wireless Subscribers
Out of the total 1,265.73 million wireless subscribers, 1,185.60 million were active during the peak VLR in March 2026. This means approximately 93.67 percent of the total wireless subscriber base was active.
Bharti Airtel reported a peak VLR of 99.24 percent, BSNL 56.36 percent, Vodafone Idea 85.30 percent, MTNL 141.50 percent, and Reliance Jio 98.62 percent.
My name is Narendra Jijhontiya. I am an experienced content writer with several years of expertise in the field. Currently, I contribute to Daily Kiran, creating engaging and informative content across a variety of categories including TECHNOLOGY, health, travel, education, and automobiles. My goal is to deliver accurate, insightful, and captivating information through my words to help readers stay informed and empowered.
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