Reliance Jio announced that its True 5G service is now live in 500 cities and towns across India, having crossed the milestone 14 months ahead of the original schedule. The rollout, which uses standalone 5G architecture on a 700 MHz, 3.5 GHz, and 26 GHz spectrum combination, has already connected over 12 crore 5G-enabled users who are experiencing average download speeds of 260 Mbps, more than 30 times faster than the typical 4G speeds on congested networks.
Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani confirmed Jio is on track to expand 5G service to 1,000 cities by December 2025, effectively covering 85% of India urban population within three years of spectrum auction. The rapid deployment is being enabled by a combination of Jio own fibre backhaul infrastructure, AI-driven network planning tools, and a 2 lakh+ strong tower network. India now has the second-largest 5G subscriber base in the world after China, with industry analysts projecting 35 crore 5G connections by December 2026.