Lok Sabha Question No. 1730 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-07-27
Subject: Mobile Internet Subscribers
Ministry: COMMUNICATIONS
Asked by: Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1730 TO BE ANSWERED ON 27 th  JULY, 2022

## MOBILE INTERNET SUBSCRIBERS

## 1730.   COL. RAJYAVARDHAN RATHORE:

Will the Minister of COMMUNICATIONS be pleased to state:

- (a) the details of the current number of mobile internet subscribers as of June 2022, state wise, including district  wise  details  for  Rajasthan;
- (b) the other steps taken by the Government to improve internet quality and e infrastructure;
- (c) the details of progress made under National Digital Connectivity Policy, which aims to connect one crore public wifi hotspots by 2022, and the timelines of such hotspots that have been created, state wise including district wise details for Rajasthan;
- (d) whether the Government is initiating awareness programmes under the PM-WANI scheme in rural and remote areas to encourage education institutes and MSMEs to connect to the digital space; if so, the details thereof; and
- (e) the steps taken by the Government to ensure data protection and privacy of users of public Wi-Fi systems?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR COMUNICATIONS (SHRI DEVUSINH CHAUHAN)

- (a) State-wise details of mobile internet subscribers as of May 2022 are at Annexure-I. Districtwise information on mobile internet subscribers is not available;
- (b) In  order to improve internet quality and expansion of telecommunication infrastructure, the Government has initiated a series of policy initiatives such as:-
- a. Making available sufficient spectrum for mobile services
- b. Allowing spectrum sharing and trading
- c. Allowing sharing of infrastructure by the Telecom Service Providers (TSPs)
- d. Notifying Indian Telegraph Right of Way Rules, 2016 dated 15.11.2016 for regulating underground  infrastructure  (optical  fibre)  and  over-ground  infrastructure  (mobile towers);
- (c) The information is being collected and will be laid on the table of House.
- (d) Yes  Sir.  Department  of  Telecommunications  has  been  regularly  conducting  workshops, webinars and issuing press briefs for the awareness of PM-WANI framework in rural and remote areas of the country; and
- (e) Department  of  Telecommunications  has  issued  instructions  to  Service  Providers  regarding secure use of public Wi-Fi access points. Further, detailed guidelines including security conditions have been issued by the Government for the entities operating under PM-WANI framework.

State wise mobile Internet subscribers

| Sl. No.   | State                           | Total        |
|-----------|---------------------------------|--------------|
| 1         | Andaman and Nicobar             | 371568       |
| 2         | Andhra Pradesh                  | 3,07,57,817  |
| 3         | Arunachal Pradesh               | 7,78,255     |
| 4         | Assam                           | 1,60,26,355  |
| 5         | Bihar                           | 4,31,50,545  |
| 6         | Chandigarh                      | 7,03,711     |
| 7         | Chhattisgarh                    | 1,50,69,527  |
| 8         | Dadar &Nagar Haveli &Daman &Diu | 5,86,382     |
| 9         | Delhi                           | 3,81,07,280  |
| 10        | Goa                             | 17,74,482    |
| 11        | Gujarat                         | 4,85,97,587  |
| 12        | Haryana                         | 2,05,11,042  |
| 13        | Himachal Pradesh                | 59,56,995    |
| 14        | Jammu &Kashmir                  | 84,22,971    |
| 15        | Jharkhand                       | 1,60,66,925  |
| 16        | Karnataka                       | 4,65,93,528  |
| 17        | Kerala                          | 2,81,00,007  |
| 18        | Ladakh                          | 1,75,845     |
| 19        | Lakshadweep                     | 84,363       |
| 20        | Madhya Pradesh                  | 4,10,40,935  |
| 21        | Maharashtra                     | 9,45,32,464  |
| 22        | Manipur                         | 20,01,305    |
| 23        | Meghalaya                       | 17,71,018    |
| 24        | Mizoram                         | 10,73,408    |
| 25        | Nagaland                        | 14,75,429    |
| 26        | Odisha                          | 2,09,16,104  |
| 27        | Puducherry                      | 6,06,514     |
| 28        | Punjab                          | 2,38,26,599  |
| 29        | Rajasthan                       | 4,35,70,050  |
| 30        | Sikkim                          | 7,13,933     |
| 31        | Tamil Nadu                      | 5,34,09,787  |
| 32        | Telangana                       | 2,87,47,530  |
| 33        | Tripura                         | 18,57,573    |
| 34        | Uttar Pradesh                   | 10,15,81,752 |
| 35        | Uttarakhand                     | 82,60,048    |
| 36        | West Bengal                     | 5,47,59,421  |
| Total     | Total                           | 80,19,79,055 |

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Annexure-I