NEW DELHI: Communication minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Thursday said a 10% increase in mobile phone tariff by telecom service providers (TSPs) was because of the investment made in the rollout of 5G in the country.
The minister, speaking in Parliament, also mentioned that telecom service providers have covered 98% of districts and 82% of the population with the 5G networks within 22 months of 5G launch in the country. “Nearly Rs 4.5 lakh crore has been invested in rolling out the 5G network. There should be a return on investment,” said the minister.
The minister highlighted that India has the cheapest voice and data tariff across the world. All three private telcos such as Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea Limited, have raised their tariff by up to 25% in July 2024.
The minister said that the mobile phone tariff has come down by 94% since 2014. “Today there are 116 crore mobile phone subscribers. If we talk about internet penetration, there were 25 crore subscribers in 2014, and today the number is 97.44 crore,” the minister said.
The minister also said that when the number of consumers increases, it is necessary to monitor tariffs. He mentioned that a one-minute call used to cost 50 paise in 2014, and at present, it costs three paise, which reflects a 94% dip in the cost structure. He further informed the House that the cost of one GB broadband was Rs 270 per GB in 2014, which has come down to Rs 9.70 per GB, reflecting a 93% drop in tariff.
The minister said that India is the most economical country in the world based on internet data costs.