Airtel India has announced a drop in data tariff, by increasing the data benefits for the prepaid customers, by up to 67%. The data benefits are added to the monthly packs and this will boost the data consumption, while keeping the data costs the same.
Alongside the increase in data benefits on monthly packs, Airtel India is also offering Sachet packs where affordable smaller packs are given for driving first-time users.
Ajai Puri, Director – Operations (India & South Asia), Bharti Airtel said, “At Airtel, we always aim to deliver a great mobile experience and value to our customers. These refreshed data packs will help drive consumption and boost the uptake of mobile internet in the country. Given the deepening smartphone penetration and Airtel’s roll-out of data networks across India, we believe these packs will also drive affordability and bring new users online.”
Following are the effective prices and data benefits offered, compared to the amount of data provided earlier. There is no change to the data amount when recharging for the 800MB or 1GB data pack, which costs about Rs. 247 to Rs. 255 for 28 days.
New Monthly Packs
| Pack Type | MRP (Rs) | Current Data Benefit | New Data Benefit | Validity | % Increase |
| 4G/3G | 455 | 2 GB | 3 GB | 28 days | 50% |
| 4G/3G | 655 | 3 GB | 5GB | 28 days | 67% |
| 4G/3G | 755 | 4 GB | 6GB | 28 days | 50% |
| 4G/3G | 855 | 5 GB | 7 GB | 28 days | 40% |
| 4G/3G | 989 | 6.5 GB | 10 GB | 28 days | 54% |
New Sachet Packs
| Pack Type | MRP (Rs) | Current Data Benefit | New Data Benefit | Validity | % Increase |
| 4G/3G | 5 | 15 MB | 20 MB | 1 day | 32% |
| 4G/3G | 23 | 70 MB | 90 MB | 3 days | 29% |
| 4G/3G | 53 | 160 MB | 200 MB | 5 days | 25% |
| 4G/3G | 145 | 440 MB | 580 MB | 14 days | 32% |
| 2G | 5 | 20 MB | 30 MB | 1 day | 48% |
| 2G | 25 | 100 MB | 145 MB | 3 days | 45% |
This is surely a welcome change because the launch of Reliance Jio 4G is nearing and there is a lot expected when it comes to affordability. There are several users waiting for the commercial launch of Jio 4G to happen, and this heats up the competition.
In the coming days, we are hopeful to see some similar steps by other network providers, including Idea, Vodafone, and Tata Docomo.
