Vi Expands 5G Network in West Bengal, Plans Rollout Across 10 Cities

Vodafone Idea (Vi) has announced a fresh expansion of its 5G network in eastern India. The telecom operator has revealed plans to extend next-generation connectivity to additional locations in West Bengal and neighbouring markets as part of its ongoing rollout strategy. The move comes months after the company outlined plans to significantly increase its 5G footprint across the country. Vi has now shared details about the latest phase of deployment and the cities included in the expansion plan.

Vi Extends 5G Its Coverage in India With Rollout in New Cities

On Thursday, the company revealed that it has started offering 5G services in Malda, Haldia, and Berhampur as part of its broader expansion strategy in West Bengal. The company added that 5G services will soon be extended to Durgapur, Asansol, Habra-Ashoknagar, Burdwan, Kharagpur, Gangtok, and Darjeeling, taking the current phase of deployment to 10 cities across the region.

Vi said it is prioritising key markets that include industrial hubs, high data consumption centres, and emerging urban clusters. The company noted that the rollout covers industrial locations such as Durgapur and Asansol, as well as commercial and port-linked centres like Haldia, and even tourism-focused destinations including Darjeeling and Gangtok.

The latest announcement follows Vi's broader nationwide 5G expansion plans revealed in March. At the time, the telecom operator said it would roll out 5G services to 90 additional cities by May 2026. The company also stated that it had already offered 5G connectivity in 43 cities across 17 telecom circles and expected that figure to increase to 133 cities as deployment continued across 15 circles.

As part of that roadmap, Vi identified several states and regions for expansion, including Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh East, Uttar Pradesh West, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Haryana, and Gujarat. The operator said it would prioritise industrial corridors, urban growth centres, and locations with high data usage across these circles.

Vi had previously listed Durgapur, Asansol, Darjeeling, and Gangtok among the cities scheduled to receive 5G coverage in the eastern region. Other locations included Varanasi, Prayagraj, Haridwar, Karnal, Panipat, Ludhiana, Amritsar, and Jalandhar. The company also announced expansion plans for cities in western, southern, and central India, including Chennai, Hyderabad, Coimbatore, Tirupati, Kolhapur, Kota, Udaipur, Bhopal, and Gwalior.

The telecom operator earlier said it is working with Nokia, Ericsson, and Samsung to deploy its 5G infrastructure in markets where demand and compatible device adoption are increasing. With the latest rollout in West Bengal, Vi continues to move toward its previously announced target of expanding 5G coverage to more than 100 cities across India.