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Information Note to the Press (Press Release No 70/ 2026)
TELECOM REGULATORY AUTHORITY OF INDIA
www.trai.gov.in
New Delhi, 811i June 2026
For Immediate Release
TRAI Assesses Mobile Network Quality Across cities and adjoining areas ofEast Jaintia Hills and West
Jaintia Hills Districts and from Ratha Cherre Khasia Punjee to Jowai along NH-6 in the State of
Meghalaya under North East LSA.
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has released findings of Independent Drive
Test (IDT) conducted across East Jaintia Hills and West Jaintia Hills Districts and from Ratha Cherre
Khasia Punjee to Jowai along NH-6 in the State of Meghalaya under North East LSA, during the month
ofMarch 2026, for information of general telecom consumers. The purpose ofthis drive test is to assess
and verify real time quality ofmobile network services (both voice & data) provided by Telecom Service
Providers (TSPs). During the IDT, TRAI captures performance ofTSPs for key Quality ofService (QoS)
parameters like Coverage, Call Drop Rate (CDR), Call Setup Success Rate (CSSR), data Download (DL)
and Upload (UL) throughput etc., which are then published to inform Consumers and encourage TSPs to
improve their services.
2. These IDTs have been designed to capture on ground mobile network performance of all TSPs
across diverse usages environment like cities, hotspots, public transport hubs, etc. In this type of drive
testing, live data and voice sessions are established using SIM cards from all TSPs over 2G, 3G, 4G, and
5G networks. Multiple advanced test handsets are used, and the sessions are monitored and analysed in
real-time using advanced Software Systems.
3. TRAI, through its appointed agency, conducted drive tests across City drive - 213.0 KMs,
Highway drive- 98.9 Kms, Hotspot locations - I 0, Walk Test - 0.5 Kms in Meghalaya State during 11 111
March 2026 to 16th March 2026 in North East LSA. These tests were conducted under the supervision
of the TRAI Regional Office Kolkata. The observations presented in drive test reports represent the
performance ofthe TSPs on the area/ route under test on the day/ time ofconducting the drive test.
4. Drive Test Route Map: The following map provides overview ofdrive test routes indicating
City drive, Inter-operator calling, Hotspots and Walk tests, as per the legends shown on the map: -
Leaends
I
City
Hotspot
W•lk T•st
Htchw•v5. Key Parameters Assessed
a) Coverage Gap: Percentage of samples, for which signal strength observed less than the
minimum prescribed signal strength for respective technology (2G/ 3G/ 4G/ 5G).
b) Voice Services: Call Setup Success Rate (CSSR), Drop Call Rate (pCR), Call Setup Time,
Call Silence Rate, Speech Quality (MOS).
c) Call Silence Instance: Number ofcall silence instance occurred during the calls.
d) Data Servies: Download/ Upload Throughput, Latency, Jitter, Packet Drop Rate
6. The overall mobile network performance in East Jaintia Hills and West Jaintia Hills Districts and
from Ratha Cherre Khasia Punjee to Jowai along NH-6 for the key parameters has been summarised
below:
a) Coverage Gap -The signal strength observed during voice testing on the city drive test route
and highway drive test route in auto-selection mode (5G/4G/3G/2G), measured as the
number of samples having poor signal strength out of the total samples collected, was as
detailed below-
Parameter AIRTEL BSNL RJIL VIL
Total Number of Samples
34747 24967 34627 28300
captured on city Drive test route
Number of Samples having poor
5822 11479 3808 13632
si211al strength
Parameter AIRTEL BSNL RJIL VIL
Total Number ofSamples
12407 8972 14836 12887
captured on HW Drive test route
Number ofSamples having poor
1997 2719 2091 4946
signal strength
Details ofthe coverage gaps have been provided in the map Annexed.
b) Dropped Calls -Dropped calls, measured as the number ofdropped calls out ofthe number
o f successfull1 y est a bl"I S he d caIIs, were as s hown be 1o w.
Parameter AIRTEL BSNL RJIL VIL
Number of successful Calls
246 164 249 216
Established during city drive
Number of dropped Calls 5 34 2 30
Parameter AIRTEL BSNL RJIL VIL
Number of successful Calls
62 42 76 70
Established during HW drive
Number ofdropped Calls 3 6 3 10
Details ofthe dropped call locations have been provided in the map Annexed.
c) Call Silence Instance - Call silence instances, measured as the total number of silence
instances observed for > 3 seconds out ofthe total calls established, were as shown below-
Parameter AIRTEL BSNL RJIL VIL
Call Established (during city
drive) (within service provider 239 124 242 149
network)
Number of silences calls for >3
19 8 11 3
Sec
Total number of silence instances
27 10 18 3
for >3 Sec
2Parameter AIRTEL BSNL RJIL VIL
Call Established (during HW
drive) (within service provider 63 36 61 51
network)
Number of silences calls for >3
5 5 5 1
Sec
Total number of silence instances
8 9 6 2
for >3 Sec
Details ofthe call silence instance locations have been provided in the map Annexed.
d) Data Download and Upload Throughput:
i) Data Download performance (Overall): Average download speed was observed as per
below-
Measured AJRTEL BSNL RJIL VIL
Parameter
in (upto SG) (upto 4G) (upto SG) (upto 4G)
Typical Download
throughput declared by (Mbits/s) 9. 14 5.00 15.00 15.00
TSP
Average Download
Throughput measured (Mbits/s) 72.24 9.54 97.89 25.45
during IDT (city drive)
Measured AIRTEL BSNL RJIL VIL
Parameter
in (upto SG) (upto 4G) (upto SG) (upto 4G)
Typical Download
throughput declared by (Mbits/s) 9.14 5.00 15.00 15.00
TSP
Average Download
Throughput measured (Mbits/s) 88.50 4.37 122.77 23.35
during IDT (HW drive)
Detail ofDownload throughput has been provided in the map Annexed.
ii) Data Upload performance (Overall): Average upload speed was observed as per below-
AJRTEL BSNL RJIL
Measured VIL
Parameter (upto (upto (upto
in (upto 4G)
SG) 4G) SG)
Typical upload
throughput declared by (Mbits/s) 4.47 3.00 7.00 8.00
TSP
Average Upload
Throughput measured (Mbits/s) 14.50 3.85 6.21 4.81
during IDT (City drive)
AIRTEL BSNL RJIL
Measured VIL
Parameter (upto (upto (upto
in (upto 4G)
SG) 4G) SG)
Typical upload
throughput declared by (Mbits/s) 4.47 3.00 7.00 8.00
TSP
Average Upload
Throughput measured (Mbits/s) 20.22 2.31 5.64 5.12
during IDT (HW drive)
Detail of Upload throughput has been provided in the map Annexed.
3Locations ofDropped Calls and Call Silence instances can be seen by clicking red dot on the map
Annexed.
7. Details ofdrive test route and area covered during the IDT is as under:
a) City - The areas covered in the city drive are Jowai, Khliehtyrshi, Nongbah, Moorap,
Nartiang, Mynsgat, Namdong, Barato, Kyndong Tuber, Phramer, Shangpung, Byrwai
Village, Pynthorscale, Mutong, Kongong, Sutunga and Rachai etc.
b) Highway-Theareas covered in the HW drive are Ratha Cherre Khasia Punjee to Jowai along
NH-6 passing through Ratachera, Rungchera, Umkiyang, Sonapur, Lumsunong, Mynkre,
Lad Rymbai, Wapung Sukar, Mynswang and Mukhla etc.
c) Hotspot -The hot spot locations, capturing stationary user experience, are (i) 25.035635/
92.436586, NH6, Suna Cherra Mikir Punji, (ii) 25.057459/ 92.391394, NH6, Umkiyang,
(iii) 25.303694/ 92.378571, NH6, Myndihati, (iv) District and Sessions CourtEast Jaintia Hills
District Khliehriat, (v) Dr. Norman Tunnel Hospital, Jowai, (vi) Jaintia Hills Autonomous
District Council, Jowai, (vii) Kiang Nangbah Government College Ladthadlaboh, Jowai, (viii)
Office of The Deputy Commissioner, Jowai, (ix) Rama Krishna Mission Secondary School
Nartiang, (x) Vishal Mega Mart Khileriat Dkhiah East.
c) Walk Test -The walk tests conducted on I 31h March 2026, covered District Civil Hospital
Ialong, capturing mobile network behaviour in crowded pedestrian environments.
8. The findings ofthis IDT report have been shared with respective TSPs for taking further necessary
action at their end. Detailed reports of IDT are made available on the TRAI website at www.trai.gov.in.
For any clarification or additional information, an email can be sent to adv.kolkata@trai.gov.in or
Regional Office ofTRAJ at Kolkata RO can be contacted on telephone no. +91-33-22361401.
1<. . ~'
Mukhe~~<-ou;
Kaushik
Advisor, RO Koll<.a'
4Annexure
1. East Jaintia Hills and West Jaintia Hills Districts (City drive)
a) Coverage Gap – The coverage distribution found less than the minimum specified signal strength
for the city drive test route in auto-selection mode (5G/4G/3G/2G) during voice testing, is as below:
Parameter AIRTEL BSNL RJIL VIL
Total Number of Samples captured on Drive test route 34747 24967 34627 28300
Number of Samples having poor signal strength 5822 11479 3808 13632
Note: Signal strength has been considered poor if it falls below −110 dBm for 5G & 4G, −90 dBm for
3G, and −85 dBm for 2G.
Coverage Gap observed (City Drive)
AIRTEL BSNL
RJIL VIL
Note: Plot is based on Dynamic Drive Test results only.
5b) Dropped Calls - The TSP-wise details of dropped calls during city drive in auto-selection mode
(5G/ 4G/ 3G/ 2G) are as below:
Parameter AIRTEL BSNL RJIL VIL
Number of successful Calls Established 246 164 249 216
Number of dropped Calls 5 34 2 30
Locations of Dropped Calls (City drive)
AIRTEL BSNL
RJIL VIL
Note: Dropped calls locations are shown in red colour and which can be clicked to know the exact
location (latitude and longitude) on the maps.
6c) Call Silence Instance - The TSP-wise details of Call silence instance during city drive in Auto-
selection mode (5G/4G) are as below:
Parameter AIRTEL BSNL RJIL VIL
Call Established
239 124 242 149
(within service provider network)
Number of silences calls for >3 Sec 19 8 11 3
Total number of silence instances for >3 Sec 27 10 18 3
Locations of Call Silence Instance (City drive)
AIRTEL BSNL
RJIL VIL
N ote: Call silence instances are shown in red colour and which can be clicked to know the exact
location (latitude and longitude) on the map.
7d) Data Download and Upload throughput: The TSP-wise details of Average Download (DL) and
Upload (UL) throughput against declared typical DL/UL Throughput for month, in Auto-selection
mode (5G/4G/3G/2G) are as below:
(i) Download Throughput (City drive)
RJIL
Measured AIRTEL BSNL VIL
Parameter (upto 5G)
in (upto 5G) (upto 4G) (upto 4G)
Typical Download
(Mbits/s) 9.14 5.00 15.00 15.00
throughput declared by TSP
Average Download
Throughput measured during (Mbits/s) 72.24 9.54 97.89 25.45
IDT (city drive)
AIRTEL BSNL
RJIL VIL
Note: Plot is based on Dynamic Drive Test results only.
8(ii) Upload Throughput (City drive)
RJIL
AIRTEL BSNL VIL
Measured (upto
Parameter (upto (upto (upto
in 5G)
5G) 4G) 4G)
Typical upload throughput
(Mbits/s) 4.47 3.00 7.00 8.00
declared by TSP
Average Upload Throughput
measured during IDT (City
(Mbits/s) 14.50 3.85 6.21 4.81
drive)
AIRTEL BSNL
RJIL VIL
Note: Plot is based on Dynamic Drive Test results only.
92. Ratha Cherre Khasia Punjee to Jowai along NH-6 (HW drive):
a) Coverage Gap - The coverage distribution found less than the minimum specified signal strength
for the drive test route in auto-selection mode (5G/4G/3G/2G) during voice testing, is as below:
Parameter AIRTEL BSNL RJIL VIL
Total Number of Samples captured on Drive test route 12407 8972 14836 12887
Number of Samples having poor signal strength 1997 2719 2091 4946
Note: Signal strength has been considered poor if it falls below −110 dBm for 5G & 4G, −90 dBm for
3G, and −85 dBm for 2G.
Coverage Gap observed (Highway)
AIRTEL BSNL
RJIL VIL
Note: Plot is based on Dynamic Drive Test results only.
10b) Dropped Calls - The TSP-wise details of dropped calls during HW drive in auto-selection mode
(5G/ 4G/ 3G/ 2G) are as below:
Parameter AIRTEL BSNL RJIL VIL
Number of successful Calls Established 62 42 76 70
Number of dropped Calls 3 6 3 10
Locations of Dropped Calls (Highway drive)
AIRTEL BSNL
RJIL VIL
Note: Dropped calls locations are shown in red colour and which can be clicked to know the exact
location (latitude and longitude) on the map.
11c) Call Silence Instance - The TSP-wise details of Call silence instance during HW drive in Auto-
selection mode (5G/4G) are as below:
Parameter AIRTEL BSNL RJIL VIL
Call Established
63 36 61 51
(within service provider network)
Number of silences calls for >3 Sec 5 5 5 1
Total number of silence instances for >3 Sec 8 9 6 2
Locations of Call Silence Instance (Highway drive)
AIRTEL BSNL
RJIL VIL
Note: Call silence instan ces are shown in red colour and which can be clicked to know the exact
location (latitude and longitude) on the map.
12d) Data Download and Upload throughput: The TSP-wise details of Average Download (DL) and
Upload (UL) throughput against declared typical DL/UL Throughput for month, in Auto-selection
mode (5G/4G/3G/2G) are as below:
(i) Download Throughput (Highway drive)
RJIL
Measured AIRTEL BSNL VIL
Parameter (upto 5G)
in (upto 5G) (upto 4G) (upto 4G)
Typical Download
(Mbits/s) 9.14 5.00 15.00 15.00
throughput declared by TSP
Average Download
Throughput measured during (Mbits/s) 88.50 4.37 122.77 23.35
IDT
AIRTEL BSNL
RJIL VIL
Note: Plot is based on Dynamic Drive Test results only.
13(ii) Upload Throughput (Highway drive)
RJIL
AIRTEL BSNL VIL
Measured (upto
Parameter (upto (upto (upto
in 5G)
5G) 4G) 4G)
Typical upload throughput
(Mbits/s) 4.47 3.00 7.00 8.00
declared by TSP
Average Upload Throughput
measured during IDT (Mbits/s) 20.22 2.31 5.64 5.12
AIRTEL BSNL
RJIL VIL
Note: Plot is based on Dynamic Drive Test results only.
14