India mobile subscribers base at 948.54 mn as August 2017: COAI

As of August-end 2017, India's private telecom service providers amassed a total of 948.54 million subscribers, with Bharti Airtel continuing to hold the top slot.

The numbers include those of Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd as of July-end, according to data released by industry body Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI).

Amongst individual companies, Bharti Airtel continued to hold the top position with a 29.63 per cent market share, even though subscriber additions fell by 206,251 in August. Airtel, the country's leading mobile operator, had a total 281 million users.

Vodafone India maintained its second position with a market share of 21.94 per cent, even though it lost 2.4 million subscribers during the month. Idea Cellular lost 2.9 million users during the months, while it stood third with a 20.14 per cent market share.

Idea, an Aditya Birla group company, ended August with 191.06 million subscribers.

''The telecom industry is contributing significantly to the Indian economy. The industry has ensured that Government's Digital India programme reaches the farthest corners of the country and everyone reaps the benefit of new communication technologies,'' Rajan S Mathews, Director General at COAI said.

Aircel and Telenor were the other operators who lost subscribers, with the former losing 785,896 and the latter 111,094. Reliance Jio had a 13.46 per cent market share.

Among telecom circles, Uttar Pradesh (East) remained at the top with a total of 84.07 million subscribers, while Kerala reported the maximum subscriber additions, ending the month at 0.17 million subscribers. Bharti remains the market leader in 13 circles, followed by Vodafone in five and Idea in three, COAI data showed.