Hindi
India’s telecom subscribers cross 1.32 billion in February 2026
Broadband base swells past 1.06 billion as Jio and Airtel tighten grip on the market.
MUMBAI: India’s telecom sector is ringing in steady growth once again adding millions of new connections every month while the race for broadband supremacy continues to heat up like a fiercely contested cricket match. According to the latest data released by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on 1 April 2026, the total telephone subscriber base in the country reached 1,321.31 million at the end of February 2026. This marked a net addition of 7.31 million subscribers during the month, translating into a monthly growth rate of 0.56 per cent.
Wireless subscribers (including mobile and Fixed Wireless Access) stood at 1,273.31 million, registering a net addition of 6.97 million and a growth rate of 0.55 per cent. Within this, urban wireless connections grew to 730.75 million (growth 0.70 per cent), while rural wireless subscribers reached 542.56 million (growth 0.35 per cent).
Wireline subscribers, though much smaller in scale, showed slightly faster growth. The total wireline base increased to 47.99 million, with a net addition of 0.34 million and a monthly growth rate of 0.70 per cent. Urban areas continued to dominate wireline connections with a share of 89.41 per cent.
Overall tele-density in India improved to 92.66 per cent. Urban tele-density stood at 150.68 per cent, while rural tele-density edged up to 60.02 per cent.
The broadband subscriber base crossed a significant milestone, reaching 1,059.05 million at the end of February 2026. This reflected a healthy net addition of 6.33 million subscribers and a monthly growth rate of 0.60 per cent from January’s figure of 1,052.72 million.
Segment-wise, mobile wireless access continued to drive the majority of growth with 996.52 million subscribers. Fixed Wireless Access (including 5G FWA) added 16.51 million, while wired broadband stood at 46.02 million.
Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd. maintained its commanding lead with 519.64 million broadband subscribers. Bharti Airtel Ltd. followed with 364.14 million, Vodafone Idea Ltd. with 129.36 million, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. with 28.70 million, and Atria Convergence Technologies Ltd. with 2.38 million.
Together, these top five players command a massive 98.60 per cent share of the total broadband market.
In the wireless (mobile) segment, private operators continued to dominate with 92.59 per cent market share, leaving public sector undertakings (BSNL and MTNL) with just 7.41 per cent.
Out of the total 1,257.29 million wireless (mobile) subscribers, 1,177.60 million were active on the peak Visitor Location Register (VLR) date, representing an impressive 93.66 per cent activity rate. Bharti Airtel led in this metric with 99.42 per cent of its subscribers active.
Meanwhile, 14.47 million subscribers submitted requests for Mobile Number Portability (MNP) in February, indicating healthy competition and customer churn across zones.
While urban areas still lead in absolute numbers, rural connectivity is slowly catching up. Rural wireless tele-density stood at 59.46 per cent, compared with the much higher urban figure of 142.32 per cent.
Fixed Wireless Access using 5G technology also showed promising traction, growing to 11.93 million subscribers. Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel are the primary players driving this segment.
The data paints a picture of a maturing yet still rapidly expanding telecom ecosystem. With total telephone subscribers now well past the 1.32 billion mark and broadband users comfortably above 1.06 billion, India continues to solidify its position as one of the world’s largest and most dynamic digital markets.
From bustling city streets to remote villages, more Indians are staying connected than ever before proving that when it comes to telecom, the country’s appetite for growth shows no signs of hanging up anytime soon.
Hindi
Government cracks down on TV content violations
Private channels received 144 actions for breaching Programme and Advertising Codes in five years.
MUMBAI: When the remote control meets the rulebook, even popular shows can find themselves on the wrong side of the law and India’s television regulators have been keeping a sharp eye on the screen. Private television channels in India are facing stricter scrutiny, with the government taking action against 144 violations of the Programme Code and Advertising Code over the last five years.
According to data shared by the minister of state for Information and Broadcasting, Dr L. Murugan, in a written reply in the Lok Sabha, the Ministry issued advisories, warnings, apology scroll orders and off-air directions to erring channels.
The breakdown of actions from 2021 to 2025 is as follows:
Advisories to specific channels: 35
Warnings: 50
Orders for apology scrolls: 54
Off-air orders: 3
Cancellation of permission: 1
Order for disclaimer: 1
Total actions: 144
The highest number of actions were recorded in 2022 (52), followed by 2021 (43). The numbers dropped sharply in 2024 (4) and 2025 (8).
The Programme Code prohibits content that is obscene, attacks religions or communities, promotes communal attitudes, or criticises/maligns individuals or groups. The Advertising Code bars indecent, vulgar, suggestive or offensive themes in commercials.
Complaints are handled through a three-level grievance redressal mechanism: first by the broadcaster itself, then by Self-Regulating Bodies, and finally through an oversight mechanism by the Central Government.
The government also regulates print and digital media. Newspapers must follow the Press Council of India’s Norms of Journalistic Conduct, while digital news publishers and online curated content fall under the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021.
From saas-bahu dramas to prime-time debates, Indian television remains a lively space, but these figures show that when lines are crossed, the Ministry is ready to switch off the show or at least make the channel say sorry on air.
