India has world’s lowest data costs, highest data usage: Scindia

Top Stories

»	Ease of doing biz, FTAs boost India’s self-reliant and globally trusted economy: Piyush Goyal
»	PM Modi to interact with India’s vibrant startup ecosystem
»	Indian stock markets remain closed for Maharashtra civic elections
»	Gold prices eye fresh record high, silver skyrockets after softer US inflation data
»	Sensex, Nifty open lower over FII outflows, crude prices rise

IANS | 17 Jan, 2026

Union Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Saturday said that India now has world’s lowest data costs and highest data usage, driven by robust digital infrastructure.

There are more than 120 crore mobile users in the country and the 4G network is expected to reach every village by June this year.

“World’s lowest data costs, world’s leading data usage India’s digital revolution led by PM Narendra Modi is truly built for its people,” the minister posted on X social media platform.

BSNL has installed a total of 97,068 4G sites, and 93,511 sites are ‘On-Air’ (till October 31, 2025). The state-run telecom operation aims to upgrade all 4G towers to 5G within the next few months.

Meanwhile, the 5G services have been rolled out in all states and union territories (UTs) across the country and presently, these are available in 99.9 per cent of the districts. As on October 31, telecom service providers (TSPs) have installed 5.08 lakh 5G Base Transceiver Stations (BTSs) across rural and urban area of the country.

More than 31 lakh Base Transceiver Stations (BTSs) have been installed across the country. To reduce call drops and improve internet connectivity in underserved areas, the government has taken several initiatives, like BharatNet project for providing broadband connectivity in Gram Panchayats (GPs) and villages, scheme for providing mobile services in Left Wing Extremism (LWE) affected areas and in Aspirational Districts, 4G Saturation scheme to provide 4G mobile coverage in all uncovered villages and launch of GatiShakti Sanchar portal and RoW (Right of Way) Rules.

Meanwhile, the telecom infrastructure is being deployed by private TSPs as well as state-led service providers.

According to Scindia, technology, spectrum, devices, applications and sustainability verticals must align seamlessly for innovations to mature and scale. The minister recently said that spectrum policy will be central to India’s 6G strategy and noted that India has already undertaken significant spectrum refarming, with more planned ahead.