News: Indian telecom subscriber base crosses 144 m

(PTI 12/05/2006) New Delhi - With the addition of 4.6 million new customers in April, gross telecom subscriber base in India has grown to 144 million pushing the tele-density to 13.16 per cent.

At the end of April 2006, the number of total fixed line telephone subscribers stood at 47.50 million while mobile subscribers reached base 97 million, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) said in a release.

During April 2006, approximately 4.60 million subscribers were added, which included around 0.73 million fixed lines and 3.88 million mobiles. The number of mobile subscribers touched 96.92 million as compared to 93.04 million in March 2006.

Approximately 1 lakh additional broadband connections were provided in April, taking the total broadband connections in India beyond 1.4 million.