India adds record 8.3 million wireless users in November

India added a record 8.3 million wireless users in November, taking the total subscriber base to 225.5 million, the telecoms regulator said.

In October, new wireless subscribers numbered 8.05 million.

Fixed-line user base continued to dwindle as more and more users shift to mobile phones. In November, the total user base fell to 39.31 million, from 39.41 million in October.

India, which added 60.35 million new wireless users in April-November, is the world's fastest growing mobile services market.

Including fixed-line users, total telephone subscriber base grew to 264.8 million by November, 8.2 million more than the previous month, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India said in a statement late on Monday.

The regulator expects India's total telephone user base to top 500 million by 2010.

Bharti Airtel Ltd, with nearly 53 million subscribers in November, is the top mobile firm in India, followed by Reliance Communications Ltd, which had 39.4 million customers at the end of the month.

Other leading players include Vodafone-controlled Vodafone Essar Ltd, state-run Bharat Sanchar Nigam, Tata Teleservices and Idea Cellular.

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