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Villages without 4G down 75% since 2022, to 11,372; 26,000 more mobile sites sanctioned

BSNL’s 18,291 rural sites served up to 10.2 lakh users a day in October.

By BDT News Desk

Published 12 Nov 2026, 5:08 PM IST · 1 min read

Villages without 4G down 75% since 2022, to 11,372; 26,000 more mobile sites sanctioned
Photo: Bharat Darshan Times graphic; data: PIB

The number of Indian villages without 4G has fallen by nearly 75% in four years, from 45,180 in 2022 to 11,372 in 2026, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) said.

The DoT credits its 4G Saturation Project, which was designed to bring 4G to 24,680 previously unconnected villages, and expansion by private operators.

BSNL's rollout

BSNL has commissioned 18,291 sites under the 24,680-site plan. In October 2026 these sites served up to 10,21,048 active users in a day, who used more than 1.86 crore GB of data, an average of 18.3 GB per user over the month, the DoT said. That works out to about 56 active users per site.

The release does not say when the remaining 11,372 villages are expected to be connected.

Source: official release by the Ministry of Communications, issued through the Press Information Bureau, Government of India (11 NOV 2026 6:25PM by PIB Delhi). Read the full official text: Government Strengthens Rural 4G Connectivity Through 4G Saturation Project.

How we verified this

Verified

Every fact, figure and quotation is taken from the official PIB release (Release ID 2335141) issued by the Ministry of Communications on 11 NOV 2026 6:25PM by PIB Delhi; checked against the source on publication. Story written by BDT from that release; no outside facts added.

Fact-checked by Hemant Sharma on 12 Nov 2026, 5:08 PM IST.

Sources

  1. 1.Government Strengthens Rural 4G Connectivity Through 4G Saturation Project — Press Information Bureau, Government of India

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