Government-owned BSNL gained 8.5 lakh mobile users in September 2024, outperforming private telecom giants Reliance Jio, Airtel, and Vodafone Idea (Vi), which collectively lost over one crore mobile customers during the same period, according to TRAI data.

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• BSNL added 8.49 lakh wireless subscribers in September 2024.
• Reliance Jio lost 79.69 lakh customers, Airtel 14.34 lakh, and Vi 15.53 lakh during the month.
• Jio remained the largest wireless provider with 46.37 crore customers, followed by Airtel (38.34 crore) and Vi (21.24 crore).
• BSNL’s customer base grew to 9.18 crore in September.
• BSNL refrained from raising tariffs unlike private operators, which increased rates by 10-27% in July.
• BSNL introduced innovative services like spam blockers and automated SIM kiosks to attract users.
• Total wireless subscribers in India dropped to 115.37 crore in September, with an overall decline rate of 0.87%.
• Urban and rural wireless customer bases saw declines of 0.80% and 0.95%, respectively.
• TRAI data revealed broadband subscribers also decreased from 94.92 crore in August to 94.44 crore in September, a 0.51% decline.