India’s internet subscribers rise 12.76 pc to 1.09 billion in FY26: TRAI

New Delhi, Oct 5 (TNT): India’s total internet subscriber base increased 12.76 per cent year-on-year to 1,092.79 million at the end of March 2026, according to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s (TRAI) annual report for 2025-26 released on Monday.

The number of broadband subscribers rose 12.90 per cent to 1,065.88 million, while narrowband subscribers increased 7.72 per cent to 26.91 million during the year, the report stated.

TRAI said the total number of telephone subscribers increased from 1,200.80 million at the end of March 2025 to 1,330.58 million at the end of March 2026, registering a growth of 10.81 per cent.

Overall tele-density rose from 85.04 per cent to 93.26 per cent during the period.

The wireless subscriber base, including mobile and fixed wireless access (FWA), grew 10.19 per cent to 1,282.33 million, with a net addition of 118.58 million subscribers during 2025-26. Mobile subscribers alone rose 9.40 per cent to 1,265.73 million, the report said.

The wireline subscriber base recorded a sharper growth of 30.25 per cent, increasing from 37.04 million to 48.25 million during the year.

Wireless data usage also increased significantly, with total usage rising 24.74 per cent to 2,85,376 petabytes in 2025-26 from 2,28,779 PB in the previous year. However, average revenue realisation per GB declined 10.59 per cent to Rs 8.02.

The monthly average revenue per user (ARPU) for wireless services increased 3.59 per cent to Rs 180.73 from Rs 174.46 in 2024-25.

Average wireless data usage per subscriber per month rose 18.49 per cent to 25.51 GB.

The telecom sector’s gross revenue increased 8.59 per cent to Rs 4,04,067 crore in 2025-26, while adjusted gross revenue (AGR) rose 10.44 per cent to Rs 3,34,659 crore.

TRAI said the report covers the period from April 1, 2025 to March 31, 2026 and was compiled mainly from information furnished by service providers.

TNT KS