Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel jointly announced the completion of 5G coverage across all 6,000 gram panchayats in Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Bihar, bringing high-speed mobile broadband to approximately 180 million people who previously had limited or no reliable connectivity.
The rollout, partially funded through the Universal Service Obligation Fund and partly through commercial investment, used a mix of sub-6GHz spectrum for wide coverage and mmWave in market towns.
On-Ground Impact
Agricultural platforms, telemedicine services, and digital banking kiosks have reported a sharp acceleration in user registrations since connectivity arrived. A pilot programme in Varanasi district saw paddy farmers adopting satellite weather monitoring and crop advisory apps within three weeks of 5G activation.