Parliament Question: Average Per Capital Internet Data Consumption

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4254 TO BE ANSWERED ON 18TH MARCH, 2026 AVERAGE PER CAPITAL INTERNET DATA CONSUMPTION 4254. SHRI BALASHOWRY VALLABHANENI: Will the Minister of COMMUNICATIONS be pleased to state: (a) the details of average per capital internet data consumption in developed countries of the world and the manner in which it is likely to be compared with India; (b) whether it is true that India would be one of the top three countries in the world in internet usage by 2027 and if so, the details thereof; (c) the manner in which India’s internet quality can be compared with other developed countries; and (d) the details of 5G penetration in the country so far, State-wise along with the number of people are now using 5G? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE FOR COMMUNICATIONS AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT (DR. PEMMASANI CHANDRA SEKHAR) (a) As on December 2025, average wireless data usage per wireless data subscriber per month for India is 25.70 GB compared to average monthly mobile broadband traffic of 17.9 GB (as per International Telecommunication Union (ITU) estimates, 2025) per subscriber in high-income countries. (b) As of December 2025, India had 1.02 billion internet subscribers. According to these figures, India is among the top three countries in the world in terms of internet users count. (c) In 2023, Government had notified a revised definition of Broadband speed i.e. > 2Mbps, up from the earlier definition of 256 kbps. As on December 2025, out of a total 1028.61 million internet subscribers, 97.94% are broadband subscribers. India's internet quality has improved significantly in recent years. According to Ookla’s Speedtest Global Index data for January 2026, median download speed for mobile broadband in India is 130.24 Mbps. Compared to this, median mobile broadband download speed on global basis is 107.13 Mbps. To improve quality of service further, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) had released revised Quality of Service (QoS) regulations in 2024, introducing tighter benchmarks for parameters like latency and packet drop rate, along with new parameters such as jitter and significant network outage reporting, aligning India's QoS framework with global standards. The regulations also mandate graded financial disincentives for non-compliance. Service providers have been asked to adopt Six Sigma Quality Management Plan to achieve continuous improvement in the quality of services. (d) As on 28.02.2026, the total count of 5G BTSs in India is 5,23,866. The State-wise count of 5G BTSs and 5G wireless data subscribers (October 2025) is attached as annexure-I. Licensed Service Area (LSA)-wise percentage population covered by 5G as on 31-12-2025 is also attached in annexure-II. 1Annexure-I Annexure referred to reply to part (d) of Lok Sabha Unstarred Question no. 4254 answered on 18th March 2026 regarding “Average Per Capital Internet Data Consumption’’ State/UT wise count of 5G BTSs as on 28.02.2026 and 5G wireless data subscribers count (October 2025): State/UTs Count of 5G 5G wireless data BTS subscribers count Andhra Pradesh 20,913 1,50,29,394 Arunachal Pradesh 709 5,43,166 Assam 10,147 82,63,259 Bihar 27,938 2,50,53,716 Chhattisgarh 7,300 64,41,085 Goa 1,089 6,99,781 Gujarat 35,980 2,31,65,163 Haryana 19,064 1,09,91,710 Himachal Pradesh 4,662 25,97,581 Jharkhand 10,621 89,47,953 Karnataka 34,444 2,33,90,833 Kerala 21,968 97,55,318 Madhya Pradesh 22,473 1,81,84,614 Maharashtra 54,815 4,50,84,345 Manipur 1,355 8,28,374 Meghalaya 896 7,14,914 Mizoram 506 3,88,067 Nagaland 821 5,18,557 Odisha 14,479 1,07,47,949 Punjab 17,989 97,81,667 Rajasthan 31,343 2,06,70,453 Sikkim 358 2,47,629 Tamil Nadu 37,855 2,22,31,525 Telangana 19,798 1,38,23,690 2Tripura 1,401 8,71,267 Uttar Pradesh 60,637 5,02,48,202 Uttarakhand 6,106 36,23,827 West Bengal 34,164 2,42,31,931 Andaman & Nicobar (UT) 142 97,266 Chandigarh (UT) 814 7,17,829 Dadra and Nagar Haveli & Daman and Diu 454 2,70,275 Delhi 13,785 1,27,81,190 Jammu & Kashmir 7,863 45,61,358 Ladakh (UT) 299 11,668 Lakshadweep (UT) 8 4,396 Puducherry (UT) 670 3,99,034 All-india 5,23,866 37,60,24,986 3Annexure-II Annexure referred to reply to part (d) of Lok Sabha Unstarred Question no. 4254 answered on 18th March 2026 regarding “Average Per Capital Internet Data Consumption’’ LSA-wise Percentage (%) Population covered by 5G network as on 31-12-2025: Name of LSA % of population covered by 5G network Andhra Pradesh 87.43 Assam 77.72 Bihar 94.52 Delhi 100 Gujarat 94.87 Haryana 99.52 Himachal Pradesh 70 Jammu & Kashmir 78.28 Karnataka 79.92 Kerala 97.54 Kolkata 100 Madhya Pradesh 68.71 Maharashtra 88.35 Mumbai 100 North-East 52.72 Odisha 78.29 Punjab 97.48 Rajasthan 77.63 Tamil Nadu 88.1 UP (East) 83.97 UP (West) 86.53 West Bengal 88.98 All-India 86.18 ***** 4