India has witnessed a massive increase in broadband subscribers, growing from 66 crore to 94.49 crore, while the per capita average monthly wireless data consumption has also seen a sharp rise, doubling from 10 GB to 21.10 GB, the government said on Wednesday.
The speed of mobile broadband has improved significantly as well. According to Ookla’s Speedtest Global Index, the median mobile broadband download speed surged from 10.71 Mbps in 2019 to 144.33 Mbps in February 2025.
Highlighting the country’s rapid progress in digital infrastructure, Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology, Jitin Prasada, said in Lok Sabha that the fixed broadband download speeds have increased from 29.25 Mbps to 61.66 Mbps during the same period.
The expansion of digital infrastructure has played a crucial role in this transformation. The length of Optical Fiber Cable (OFC) has more than doubled, increasing from 19.35 lakh route kilometres to 42.13 lakh route kilometres.
The number of mobile towers has also grown from 5.37 lakh to 8.23 lakh. Base Transceiver Stations (BTSs), essential for mobile connectivity, have risen from 21.80 lakh to 29.97 lakh, including 4.69 lakh 5G BTSs.
The government is actively working to strengthen broadband services across the country, the minister said. A total of 206 State Broadband Committee meetings have been conducted to ensure the smooth implementation of broadband expansion.
Capacity-building conferences have been held across several states and Union Territories, focusing on 5G use cases in key sectors such as healthcare, education, Industry 4.0, and public safety. To further boost digital transformation in rural areas, the government launched the National Broadband Mission 2.0 on January 17, 2025.
This initiative aims to accelerate digital infrastructure expansion, bridge the digital divide, and provide high-speed broadband to every citizen. The BharatNet project is also being implemented in phases to extend broadband connectivity to all Gram Panchayats (GPs) and villages beyond GPs on demand. For better network reliability and service quality, the government has introduced an amended BharatNet programme.
The Union Cabinet approved this initiative in August 2023, which includes upgrading the existing BharatNet network, appointing BSNL as the single Project Management Agency for operations, and ensuring better network management through a dedicated Network Operation Centre.
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