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India's telecom operators delivered an inline performance in the September quarter of FY26, with rising average revenue per user (ARPU) continuing to act as the biggest driver of sectoral momentum, according to a review of Q2FY26 results by Centrum.
Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio and Vodafone Idea (Vi) all reported sequential improvements in ARPU, supported by smartphone upgrades, higher data usage and a richer subscriber mix. Airtel maintained its industry lead with an ARPU of Rs256 per month, up 2.2 per cent quarter-on-quarter. Jio's ARPU rose 1.2 per cent to Rs 211.4, while Vi's increased to Rs 167 amid improving data consumption and premium-plan adoption. Subscriber additions remained strong for the top two operators. Jio added 8.3 million users during the quarter, taking its base to 506.4 million, while Airtel added 1.4 million subscribers, expanding its India wireless base to 364.2 million. Vodafone Idea, however, continued to lose subscribers, reporting a net decline of about one million subscribers. 5G adoption accelerated through the quarter, Jio's 5G user base touched 234 million, while Airtel continued to upgrade customers as device penetration improved. Fixed wireless access (FWA) remained a key catalyst in home broadband growth. Airtel added 0.95 million home broadband users, including FWA, during the quarter, while Jio added over a million home broadband connections per month through the period. Vodafone Idea expanded 5G services across all 17 spectrum circles and scaled coverage to 29 cities. The operator added 10,829 broadband sites in Q2, pushing its total to over 527,000. Centrum noted that Vi's net debt remains elevated, making execution on 4G expansion and faster 5G rollout critical for operational stability. Indus Towers, the country's largest tower company, reported steady tenancy additions, with 4,301 towers and 4,505 co-locations added during the quarter. The total portfolio now stands at 256,074 towers and 415,717 co-locations. Tata Communications posted 6.5 per cent year-on-year revenue growth on the back of rising demand in digital services and a stable connectivity business. EBITDA margins improved to 19.2 per cent. On the Internet and digital-platform side, operational trends were mixed during the quarter. (ANI)
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