Broadband
Broadband base up in July, with monthly growth at rate of 0.33%
NEW DELHI: The total Broadband subscriber base in the country has increased from 15.19 million at the end of June 2013 to 15.24 million at the end of July 2013. This is a monthly growth of 0.33 per cent. The yearly growth in broadband subscribers is 3.79 per cent during the last one year (July 2012 to July 2013).
The top five internet service providers in terms of market share (based on subscriber base) are: BSNL (9.97 million), Bharti Airtel (1.43 million), MTNL (1.10 million), Hathway (0.37 million) and You Broadband (0.32 million).
According to the latest telecom subscription data as on 31 July 2013 released by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, there are 161 internet service providers (ISPs) which are providing broadband services in the country. Out of these, 121 ISPs (having 98.48 per cent market share) have provided broadband subscription data for the month of July 2013, for the rest of the ISPs data from previous month has been retained.
Meanwhile, Indian rural telecom has faced downturn – despite service providers’ special packages – as mobile user base declined by two million in July 2013. TRAI said net mobile additions declined 0.57 per cent or by 2 million to 349.09 million from 351.10 million in June.
In July – according to TRAI data – Indian urban mobile user base increased by 3.52 million or 0.67 per cent to 525.78 million from 522.27 million in June.
The share of urban wireless subscribers has increased from 59.80 per cent to 60.10 per cent whereas share of rural wireless subscribers has decreased from 40.20 per cent to 39.90 per cent.
TRAI statistics says total wireless subscriber base increased from 873.36 million in June to 874.88 million in July 2013, registering a monthly growth of 0.17 per cent. The overall wireless Teledensity in India has reached 71.13 per cent in July from 71.08 per cent of previous month. Wireless subscription in urban areas increased to 525.78 million in July.
The urban wireless teledensity has increased from 139.16 to 139.87 whereas rural teledensity has decreased from 41.14 per cent to 40.88 per cent.
Wireline subscriber base declined from 29.73 million in June 2013 to 29.58 million in July. The net reduction in wireline subscriber base was 0.15 million at the rate of 0.50 per cent.
The share of urban subscribers has decreased from 78.11 per cent to 78.0 per cent whereas share of rural subscribers has increased from 21.89 per cent to 22.0 per cent. The overall wireline Teledensity has decreased from 2.42 per cent in June 2013 to 2.40 per cent in July 2013, with urban and rural Teledensity being 6.14 per cent and 0.76 per cent respectively.
BSNL and MTNL, the two PSU operators hold 78.65 per cent of the Wireline market share.
Broadband
Tejas Networks names Arnob Roy as MD and CEO, overhauls top leadership team
The Bengaluru-based telecom gear maker reshuffles its entire top team even as quarterly revenue collapses by 83 per cent
BENGALURU: Tejas Networks is changing the guard at the top, and doing so at speed. The Bengaluru-headquartered telecom equipment maker has elevated Arnob Roy as managing director and chief executive officer, effective April 15, 2026, for a term running through to August 3, 2028, and in the same breath announced new appointments across operations and finance. The timing is pointed: the company is navigating one of the roughest patches in its recent history.
Roy steps up from his role as executive director and chief operating officer, a position he has held since March 2019. He brings more than three decades of experience in the high-technology sector across research and development, operations, and sales. His predecessor, Anand Athreya, resigned last year citing personal reasons and was relieved on June 20, 2025, leaving a gap at the top that has now been formally filled.
The numbers Roy inherits are sobering. Tejas posted a net loss of Rs 211.3 crore in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2026, a near-194 per cent widening year on year from Rs 71.8 crore in the same period a year earlier. Revenue for the quarter collapsed 82.6 per cent year on year to Rs 333 crore, down from Rs 1,907 crore. EBITDA swung to a loss of Rs 118.2 crore against a profit of Rs 121.5 crore a year ago. The culprit is not hard to identify: Tejas has derived the bulk of its revenue from BSNL’s fourth-generation network project, delivered as part of a Tata Consultancy Services-driven consortium, and that roll-out is now winding down.
Roy, speaking during a post-earnings conference call with analysts, was candid about where the company has been. “The BSNL 4G network went live across 100,000 sites. We deployed our largest indigenous router networks in the country through the BSNL MAN network, as well as in the BharatNet Phase 3 network,” he said, adding that Tejas had also successfully rolled out its 400G and 800G DWDM equipment in domestic and international markets, and continued the deployment of what it describes as the world’s largest satellite IoT network through its vehicle tracking system solution.
The pivot to new revenue streams is already under way. Tejas has partnered with Japan’s Rakuten Symphony and NEC Corporation to push deeper into international markets, with several Open Radio Access Network trials ongoing, one of which concluded recently. The company is also diversifying across equipment categories and geographies to sustain momentum as the BSNL chapter closes.
To prosecute that strategy, Roy needs a full team around him. Preetham Uthaiah has been appointed chief operating officer, moving up from his current role as vice president of product management for wireless products at Tejas Networks. Uthaiah brings nearly 30 years of global experience spanning engineering, product management, and business development across India and the United States. Before joining Tejas Networks, he served as executive vice president of product management, marketing, and strategy at Saankhya Labs, and held senior roles at Tech Mahindra on both sides of the Atlantic. He holds an MBA from Arizona State University and a degree in electronics and communications from Karnatak University.
On the finance front, AVS Prasad has been approved as chief financial officer, effective May 16, 2026, succeeding Sumit Dhingra, who has resigned. Prasad, currently serving as finance controller at Tejas Networks, brings over 27 years of experience within the Tata Group across telecom, aerostructures, and defence. A company secretary and cost and management accountant by training, he has spent more than 15 years in senior finance roles including CFO and financial controller positions, with expertise spanning corporate finance, treasury management, regulatory compliance, internal audit, and governance.
New chief executive, new chief operating officer, new chief financial officer — all installed in a single move, at a moment when the company’s largest revenue source is drying up and the next chapter remains unwritten. Tejas Networks has placed its bets. Now it has to deliver.
