TRAI Report: How many mobile subscribers does India actually have?

Advertisement
By Geetaj Channana, NDTV | Updated: 12 June 2012 18:18 IST
Highlights
  • That’s a question there is no good answer to. According to the highlights of telecom subscription data released by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, there are 811.59 million wireless subscribers in India. But, the report goes on to say that there a
That's a question there is no good answer to. According to the highlights of telecom subscription data released by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, there are 811.59 million wireless subscribers in India. But, the report goes on to say that there are only 573.97 million subscribers in the Visitor Location Register (VLR).
 
What's the difference? VLR is the database that stores information about users that are roaming into a particular network. A user can be present in only one VLR at any given point of time. Thus, this is a better approximation of the number of active users that are currently in the network.
 
This means 237.62 million subscriptions are dormant rather than active subscribers on the network. Also, many subscribers are using dual-sim handsets with more than one connection on the same device - which means the actual number of subscribers may be even lower than the 573.97 active subscriptions.
 
Note: This VLR data excludes the number of CDMA BSNL subscribers as the service provider did not provide the VLR details of their 5.57 million subscribers.

Get your daily dose of tech news, reviews, and insights, in under 80 characters on Gadgets 360 Turbo. Connect with fellow tech lovers on our Forum. Follow us on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News for instant updates. Catch all the action on our YouTube channel.

Advertisement

Related Stories

Popular Mobile Brands
  1. These Old Galaxy Flagships Are Getting the Stable One UI 9 Update
  2. iPhone Duo Screen Repair Costs Almost as Much as an iPhone 18 Pro
  3. Redmi K100 Could Launch Soon at This Price: See Expected Specifications
  1. PS Plus Game Catalogue Will Add Mafia: The Old Country, Mycopunk, The Midnight Walk and More in October
  2. Oppo Wide-Folding Phone Key Display Features Tipped Ahead of Launch: Expected Specifications
  3. Google Play Store ‘Shop Devices’ Feature Goes Live in India With Pixel Phones and Accessories
  4. US Crypto Scam Crackdown Brings 241 Website Shutdowns by FBI, Brooklyn DA
  5. Logitech Starts Local Manufacturing in India, Products to Roll Out From Manesar Plant
  6. OnePlus Ace 7, Ace 7 Pro Listed on Google Supported Devices List Ahead of Launch
  7. iPhone Duo Screen Repair in India Costs Almost as Much as an iPhone 18 Pro
  8. DoT Mandates Caller Name Presentation for 5G and 4G Networks From Next Month
  9. iQOO Pad Pro 8.8 Launch Teased; Confirmed to Feature 9,020mAh Battery
  10. Oppo Reno 17 Design Spotted in Leaked Hands-On Image; Oppo Reno 17 Pro Unlikely to Launch in India
Download Our Apps
Available in Hindi
© Copyright Red Pixels Ventures Limited 2026. All rights reserved.