Airtel announces opening of 5G services in 8 cities

"To access 5G service, an individual must have a 5G phone, however they won't have to change their current 4G sim."

Sunil Bharti Mittal, chairman of Bharti Airtel, stated at the India Mobile Congress that the company's 5G services will be accessible starting on Saturday in eight cities.

Eight cities that will offer the services include, Delhi, Mumbai, Varanasi, Bangalore among others. The first business to introduce 5G services in the nation is Bharti Airtel. Mittal had stated before the inauguration of the 5G technology that once the Prime Minister launches 5G services, Delhi, Varanasi, Mumbai, Bangalore and other cities would all have Airtel 5G services.

By March 2023, he claimed, Airtel would launch 5G services in a number of major cities across the nation, and by March 2024, all of India.

The Telecom Department estimates that 5G technology will give upto three times more efficient spectrum use and download speeds that are ten times faster than those of 4G.

A senior corporate executive stated that Airtel will offer 5G services at current 4G tariff plan rates and that a renewed 5G tariff plan will be unveiled in the future. Additionally, the 5G services are being made available in Hyderabad, Chennai, Siliguri and Nagpur.

Randeep Singh Sekhon, chief technology officer at Bharti Airtel, stated that the organisation's backend infrastructure is prepared. He said, "We're taking it slow. For 5G service, we must put some hardware on mobile towers. The service will be accessible as of right now in the vicinity of towers where the apparatus has been placed." He further claimed that Airtel is expanding its 5G service coverage and bringing in new cities daily.

"To access 5G service, an individual must have a 5G phone, however they won't have to change their current 4G sim," he went on to say.

Following the conclusion of the 5G spectrum auctions, Bharti Airtel immediately placed an order with Ericsson, Nokia, and Samsung for 5G equipment. Airtel's spectrum acquiring stands at 19,867.8 MHZ in the 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 3300 MHz, and 26 GHz bands. Airtel purchased spectrum valued at Rs 43,084 crore in total.