NEW DELHI: Reliance Jio has emerged as the top performer in providing 5G connectivity at the recently concluded Maha Kumbh 2025, the world’s largest religious gathering.
According to a report by Ookla, Jio’s 5G availability was nearly double that of its closest competitor, Bharti Airtel. Jio achieved an impressive 83.5% 5G network availability, while Airtel lagged at 42.4% throughout the event that took place from January 12 to February 26. The report highlighted that Jio’s 5G Standalone (SA) network played a pivotal role, handling 20 million voice calls and 400 million data requests during peak times.
“The deployment of 5G SA, particularly on Jio’s 700 MHz spectrum, contributed to broader coverage and improved network responsiveness, while Airtel’s 5G NSA, operating on mid-band frequencies, provided high speeds in select locations,” reads the report.
According to the data, Reliance Jio, India’s largest telecom provider, delivered a median 5G download speed of 201.87 Mbps, significantly outperforming Airtel, which had a median speed of 165.23 Mbps. Even during peak congestion on January 26, Jio’s 5G speeds maintained a clear advantage over 4G networks, demonstrating its superior network capacity. Jio also led in 4G performance, with a median download speed of 18.19 Mbps, surpassing Airtel’s 17.65 Mbps and BSNL’s 11.64 Mbps.
The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) had directed telecom operators to undertake extensive infrastructure improvements during Mahakumbh. According to Ookla, in Prayagraj, 328 new towers were installed, 575 Base Transceiver Stations (BTS) were deployed, and 1,462 existing BTS units were upgraded.
In addition, several Cells on Wheels were deployed to enhance network capacity. The event, which drew over 66 crore devotees by its conclusion, placed unprecedented demand on mobile networks, as attendees relied on their devices for communication, navigation, and digital transactions.
Bharti Airtel, India’s second-largest telecom provider, also took steps to improve its connectivity. To meet the growing demand, Airtel added 287 new sites, optimized over 340 existing sites, and laid an additional 74 kilometers of fiber in Prayagraj.