Lok Sabha Question No. 2627 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2019-12-04
Subject: Internet Speed and Quality
Ministry: COMMUNICATIONS
Asked by: Devusinh Jesingbhai Chauhan

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS

## LOK  SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2627 TO BE ANSWERED ON 4 TH   DECEMBER, 2019

## INTERNET SPEED AND QUALITY

## 2627. SHRI DEVUSINH JESINGHBHAI CHAUHAN:

Will the Minister of COMMUNICATIONS be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the average internet speed in the country is poor and the country ranked 105th in the world in terms of internet connectivity speed and if so, the details thereof and the reasons therefor;
- (b) whether the number of internet users in the country is expected to reach about 500 million by the year end and if so, the details thereof, State/UT-wise;
- (c) whether the Government will launch next generation communication satellites to provide high quality internet and phone service in the country and if so, the details thereof and the time by which these satellites are likely to be launched; and
- (d) the increase in internet speed that is expected after the launch and operationalisation of these satellites?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS, LAW & JUSTICE AND ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI RAVI SHANKAR PRASAD)

- (a) As per the worldwide country rankings released by cable.co.uk, India has been ranked 74 th out of 207 countries in 2019. As per Akamai's (an international agency) Quarter 1, 2017 report on 'The State of Internet', India with an average internet speed of 6.5 Mbps has a global rank of 89.

Internet speed depends on various parameters such as technology deployed, network coverage, number of  simultaneous  users  accessing  the  internet,  connectivity  to  the  website  being  accessed  etc.  The  speed  of mobile internet is further dependent on a number of factors such as distance from Base Transceiver Station (BTS) serving the customer, the number of simultaneous users being served by the BTS, the traffic handled by the BTS etc.

- (b) As per 'The Indian Telecom Services Performance Indicators' report released by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on 01 st October 2019 for the period April-June,2019, there were total 665.31 million internet subscribers in the country. The service area wise internet penetration in the country as on 30 th June, 2019 is enclosed as Annexure.
- (c) & (d) New  generation  High  Throughput  Satellites  (HTS)  are  launched  to  provide  broadband connectivity  for  internet,  BharatNet,  VSAT  services  and  also  phone  connectivity  to  remote  areas.  Three satellites  namely  GSAT-19,  GSAT-11  and  GSAT-29  are  already  launched  and  GSAT-20  is  scheduled  for launch during Quarter-2, 2020.

GSAT-19, GSAT-11 and GSAT-29 together provide 25 Gbps throughput and GSAT-20 will provide 48 Gbps.

## Licensed service area wise number of internet penetration (Internet Subscribers per 100 population) in the country as on 30 th  June, 2019

| Service Area     | Internet Subscribers (in million)   | Internet Subscribers (in million)   | Internet Subscribers (in million)   | No. of Internet subscribers per 100 population   | No. of Internet subscribers per 100 population   | No. of Internet subscribers per 100 population   |
|------------------|-------------------------------------|-------------------------------------|-------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------|
|                  | Rural                               | Urban                               | Total                               | Rural                                            | Urban                                            | Total                                            |
| Andhra Pradesh   | 20.95                               | 30.95                               | 51.90                               | 32.17                                            | 121.82                                           | 57.33                                            |
| Assam            | 6.05                                | 6.26                                | 12.32                               | 21.66                                            | 110.38                                           | 36.62                                            |
| Bihar            | 24.01                               | 17.63                               | 41.64                               | 19.55                                            | 88.81                                            | 29.19                                            |
| Delhi            | 0.71                                | 36.38                               | 37.09                               | 93.97                                            | 160.81                                           | 158.64                                           |
| Gujarat          | 11.64                               | 29.77                               | 41.41                               | 30.93                                            | 105.12                                           | 62.78                                            |
| Haryana          | 5.78                                | 9.58                                | 15.36                               | 32.32                                            | 88.09                                            | 53.42                                            |
| Himachal Pradesh | 3.31                                | 2.04                                | 5.36                                | 51.86                                            | 230.24                                           | 73.60                                            |
| Jammu &Kashmir   | 2.65                                | 4.30                                | 6.95                                | 28.91                                            | 117.42                                           | 54.20                                            |
| Karnataka        | 12.40                               | 29.85                               | 42.25                               | 32.22                                            | 116.57                                           | 65.92                                            |
| Kerala           | 10.40                               | 14.95                               | 25.34                               | 38.20                                            | 163.12                                           | 69.66                                            |
| Madhya Pradesh   | 16.48                               | 26.78                               | 43.26                               | 21.13                                            | 88.28                                            | 39.93                                            |
| Maharashtra      | 20.82                               | 34.36                               | 55.18                               | 34.65                                            | 96.40                                            | 65.36                                            |
| Mumbai           | 1.28                                | 26.50                               | 27.78                               |                                                  |                                                  |                                                  |
| North East       | 2.87                                | 4.20                                | 7.07                                | 26.87                                            | 112.38                                           | 49.01                                            |
| Orissa           | 10.32                               | 6.49                                | 16.82                               | 29.03                                            | 81.17                                            | 38.61                                            |
| Punjab           | 7.25                                | 16.79                               | 24.04                               | 41.69                                            | 114.84                                           | 75.11                                            |
| Rajasthan        | 16.51                               | 21.64                               | 38.15                               | 28.66                                            | 116.77                                           | 50.11                                            |
| Tamil Nadu       | 11.99                               | 34.97                               | 46.96                               | 44.86                                            | 76.68                                            | 64.92                                            |
| UP (East)        | 24.51                               | 23.41                               | 47.92                               | 20.11                                            | 79.75                                            | 34.01                                            |
| UP (West)        | 12.55                               | 21.26                               | 33.81                               |                                                  |                                                  |                                                  |
| Kolkata          | 1.55                                | 14.73                               | 16.28                               | 22.79                                            | 102.73                                           | 45.91                                            |
| West Bengal      | 14.23                               | 14.21                               | 28.43                               |                                                  |                                                  |                                                  |
| Total            | 238.26                              | 427.05                              | 665.31                              | 26.57                                            | 101.63                                           | 50.52                                            |

*Population data/projections are available state-wise only.

Notes: 1.   Number of total internet subscribers per 100 population is derived from the subscriber data provided by  the  operators  and  the  population  projections  of  the  country,  published  by  the  Office  of  the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India.

2. Data/information for Andhra Pradesh includes Telengana, Madhya Pradesh includes Chhatishgarh, Bihar includes Jharkhand, Maharashtra includes Goa, Uttar Pradesh includes Uttarakhand,  West  Bengal  includes  Sikkim  and  North-East  includes  Arunachal  Pradesh,  Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland & Tripura states

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