The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has released the results of its Independent Drive Tests conducted across Azamgarh and Mau cities and nearby areas in Uttar Pradesh East Licensed Service Area during December 2025. The findings highlight clear performance differences among telecom operators in real world voice and data usage scenarios.
Scope and methodology of the TRAI drive test
TRAI carried out the Independent Drive Tests through its appointed agency between 2 December and 5 December 2025. The assessment covered 288.2 kilometers of city drive testing and 4.3 kilometers of walk testing across urban zones, hotspots, and public transport hubs in Azamgarh and Mau.
The tests evaluated 2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G networks to reflect the actual experience of subscribers using different handset capabilities. The results have been shared with all telecom service providers for corrective and improvement measures.
Voice service performance results
Voice services were assessed using key quality of service parameters such as call setup success rate, drop call rate, call setup time, call silence rate, speech quality measured by Mean Opinion Score, and coverage.
Reliance Jio, Vodafone Idea, and Airtel delivered near perfect call connectivity in auto selection mode across 5G, 4G, 3G, and 2G. Reliance Jio recorded a call setup success rate of 99.68 percent, Vodafone Idea followed closely at 99.84 percent, and Airtel achieved 99.51 percent. BSNL lagged behind with a lower call setup success rate of 89.24 percent.
Drop call performance further highlighted the gap. Vodafone Idea recorded zero percent drop calls, while Airtel and Reliance Jio reported a low drop call rate of 0.16 percent each. BSNL again showed weaker performance with a drop call rate of 3.38 percent.
Signal strength issues during voice testing were minimal for private operators. Poor signal strength was observed at 0.85 percent for Airtel, 1.09 percent for Reliance Jio, and 1.85 percent for Vodafone Idea along the city test route. In contrast, BSNL faced significant coverage challenges, with poor signal strength recorded at 22.43 percent.
Data service performance overview
Data performance was measured through download and upload throughput, latency, jitter, packet drop rate, and video streaming delay.
During data testing in auto selection mode, Airtel, Reliance Jio, and Vodafone Idea maintained relatively stable signal conditions, with poor signal strength observed at 7.29 percent, 8.04 percent, and 9.29 percent respectively. BSNL once again recorded the weakest performance, with poor signal strength affecting 32.67 percent of the test route, indicating major gaps in data coverage and reliability.
Overall assessment of network quality
The December 2025 TRAI Independent Drive Test results for Azamgarh and Mau clearly show that private operators Airtel, Reliance Jio, and Vodafone Idea deliver strong and consistent voice and data services across the cities. High call setup success rates, low drop calls, and limited signal degradation point to better network optimization and coverage.
BSNL, however, continues to face significant challenges in both voice and data performance, particularly in signal strength and call reliability. The findings underline the need for focused network upgrades and coverage improvements to enhance user experience in the region.
The TRAI assessment highlights clear performance differences among operators in both voice and data services across Azamgarh and Mau. In voice services, Vodafone Idea, Reliance Jio, and Airtel delivered very high call setup success rates of 99.84 percent, 99.68 percent, and 99.51 percent respectively, while BSNL lagged at 89.24 percent. Reliance Jio and Vodafone Idea also recorded the fastest call setup times at under one second, compared with 3.35 seconds for BSNL. Drop call rates remained negligible for private operators, with Vodafone Idea reporting zero percent, whereas BSNL recorded a higher 3.38 percent. Voice quality was strongest on Reliance Jio and Vodafone Idea, reflected in higher Mean Opinion Scores, while BSNL posted the lowest MOS at 2.38.
In data services, Reliance Jio led overall performance with the highest average download speed of 184.43 Mbps and the lowest latency at 22.28 ms, followed by Airtel at 112.53 Mbps. Vodafone Idea delivered moderate data speeds, while BSNL recorded significantly lower download and upload performance. Hotspot testing reinforced this trend, with Reliance Jio and Airtel showing stronger 4G and 5G throughput compared with BSNL. Overall, the results show private operators providing superior voice quality, faster data speeds, and better network responsiveness than BSNL in the region.
BABURAJAN KIZHAKEDATH
