India's 5G subscriptions to reach 1.1 billion by 2031: Ericsson report

India's 5G adoption is accelerating at an unprecedented pace, with subscriptions projected to surge past 1.1 billion by 2031, capturing 81% of the total mobile market. This exponential growth, detailed in Ericsson June 2026 Mobility Report, solidifies India's position as a global leader in mobile data consumption, forecast to almost double to 70 GB per smartphone monthly by 2031 from 37 GB in 2025. The rapid transition, driven by the widespread availability of affordable 5G-enabled devices and extensive network rollouts, underscores a fundamental shift in the nation's digital landscape. The stakes are high as Indian telecom operators aggressively deploy infrastructure and innovate. Leading players like Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel are not just expanding coverage but are also driving the uptake of Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) services, accounting for nearly 17 million connections by Q1 2026. This push is fundamentally altering consumer behavior, with a notable surge in uplink traffic—driven by content creation and cloud services—now outpacing downlink traffic for many providers. Meanwhile, the 4G subscriber base, while still dominant in 2025 at 46%, is expected to shrink dramatically as users migrate to superior 5G networks. Looking ahead, the Indian government's substantial investment of approximately $8.19 billion in the telecom sector through the Union Budget 2026, alongside initiatives like BharatNet and the new Technology Development and Investment Promotion (TDIP) Scheme for 6G, signal a strategic long-term vision. This concerted effort aims not only to bridge the digital divide and foster indigenous innovation but also to position India as a global standard-setter in next-generation telecom technologies. The coming years will see intensified competition among operators as they race to monetize 5G services, particularly with advanced offerings like 5G Standalone network slicing, a path Bharti Airtel has already begun to explore.