5G Services In India: Airtel, Jio, VI Rollout Plans

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched 5G services in India at the India Mobile Congress on October 1st in New Delhi. Now, the country's first 5G cellular network has gone live, and by the end of 2022, 75% of the population will have access to it. Although Jio's 5G services won't launch until later this month, Airtel has already announced the launch of its own 5G network in eight locations across India. This will be followed by the nationwide deployment of 5G.

The launch of 5G services by BSNL in India has also been announced. That being said, it is important to note that 5G services will take time to mature and will initially be available in just a small number of cities.

5G Launch In India 2022

Reliance Jio, Airtel, and VI have been working hard to build the hardware they need to bring their 5G services to India. As a result, the rollout of the 5G network is imminent. Fifth-generation cellular networks, or 5G, aim to enhance communication between devices. In this piece, we will share our knowledge and address the 5G network problem in India.

The Indian government has not yet made an official announcement on the launch of 5G. But according to the minister of communications, the launch of the 5G network is expected to take place in October. It is a system that makes it possible to send huge amounts of data with little downtime between transfers. People are eagerly anticipating this launch. But until the perfect announcement comes, we won't be able to say for sure that India will get 5G in 2022.

What is 5G?

For those who are unfamiliar, here is the definition of 5G:

5G, which stands for “Fifth Generation”  is the latest generation of wireless technology that is better than 4G. Compared to the previous generation of mobile networks, the fifth-generation mobile network has faster multi-Gbps speeds, less latency, and is more stable. The network favours use cases that are different from AR/VR, AI, and high-speed phone calls, among others. In the United States, South Korea, Europe, and China, 5G deployments have moved quickly forward in the past few years.

Also Read: Airtel Launches 5G Services in Guwahati

When will 5G launch in India?

On October 1st, 2022, Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled the country's first 5G network at the opening ceremonies of the India Mobile Congress (IMC). Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced that Airtel and Jio will be the first companies to roll out India's 5G network, though initially, it will be available only in a limited number of locations. At the event, Ambani, Mittal, and Birla each talked about what their companies had planned for 5G.

The government just finalized the auction of the 5G spectrum and is currently in the process of accepting and allocating the spectrum to telecom networks that made offers. Also, Reliance Jio, Airtel, and VI, the three biggest phone companies, all put in bids at the auction. Adani Data Network joined the other three telecommunications giants this time around. Bidding for India's 5G spectrum has been estimated to fetch 1.5 million rupees.

According to Airtel, the company's 5G network will be available in key cities by the end of 2023. March 2024 is the target date for Airtel to have 5G service available in every major city and metropolitan area in its service area. Bharti Airtel has a 5G launch program in place for 5,000 cities throughout the country. Initially, it is expected that Airtel will launch 5G service in a subset of Indian cities, including Hyderabad, Jamnagar, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Delhi, Gandhinagar, Kolkata, Gurugram, Lucknow, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chandigarh, and Pune.

During its AGM, Reliance Jio announced its much-anticipated 5G services. Some say that by Diwali 2022, residents of major Indian cities, including Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Chennai, will be able to use Jio's 5G services. Spreading to neighboring municipalities is in the works. They plan to have all of India covered by December 2023, a span of just 18 months. Jio has completed the 5G rollout in the country's top 1,000 cities.

5G Frequency Bands in India

The 5G radio signals in India are accessible at the following frequencies:

• 700 MHz

• 800 MHz 

• 900 MHz 

• 1800 MHz

• 2100 MHz

• 2500 MHz

• 3300 MHz

• 26 GHz.

5G Frequency bands of Jio

Out of these, Jio purchased the coveted 700 MHz band, which is believed to offer better services, along with the 800 MHz, 1800 MHz, 3300 MHz, and 26 GHz bands. The telecom behemoth pays Rs 88,078 crore for a total of 24,740 MHz of spectrum.

5G Frequency Bands of Airtel

Airtel has spent money on the 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 3300 MHz, and 26 GHz bands. The telco pays a total of 43,084 crores for the spectrum's 19,876 Mhz.

5G Frequency bands of Vi

The total investment that Vi has made is around Rs 18,799 crores, and the frequencies are 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2500 MHz, 3300 MHz, and 26 GHz bands, for a total of 6,228 MHz of airwaves.

Jio 5G Launch in India

After much anticipation, Jio has announced the launch of its 5G network in India. The telecommunications company plans to launch in the country beginning in October, in time for Diwali. Jio has stated that it will take at least 18 months for the network to fully mature across the country, and initially, Jio 5G will only be available in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Chennai.

And unlike non-freestanding (NSA) networks, the Jio 5G services will be built on a standalone 5G network, which offers faster connectivity and better latency. When compared to the current 4G network, the SA network will be completely independent and use a different data center.