COAI Data: Vodafone adds more than 6 Lakh subscribers in July

According to the data released by Cellular Operators Association Of India (COAI), Vodafone added more than six lakh new subscribers in July amongst all telecom companies.

Vodafone is followed by Airtel which added only 3.13 lakh in the same month.

The data also said that India's private telecom service providers (COAI member TSPs) have a total of 1,004.08 million mobile subscribers. This includes subscriber figures of Reliance Jio as of June 2018.

Rajan S Mathews, Director General, COAI, stated, "As the country prepares itself for next-gen technologies such as 5G, the role of the telecom sector with further evolve and advance. The Government and the industry is working in tandem to ensure last mile connectivity to every person, which in turn will open up a plethora of opportunities for everybody. The National Digital Communications Policy 2018 had also recommended several measures to alleviate the financial distress, the sector is reeling under. The growth seen in mobile subscriber base this month is encouraging, and the industry is working to ensure that connectivity reaches the farthest corners of the country.

Meanwhile, Vodafone India and Idea Cellular its merger to create the largest telecom company in the country.

The merger is expected to generate Rs.140 billion annual synergy, including opex synergies of Rs. 84 billion, equivalent to a net present value of approximately Rs.700 billion.

According to the official statement, the entity will have 1850 MHz of total spectrum holding, over 200,000 unique GSM sites and 235,000 km of fiber, the merged company offers superior voice and broadband connectivity across the country, covering 92 percent of the population and reaching nearly 500,000 towns and villages.