Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has released the findings of its drive test conducted across Kasaragod district in Kerala between May 5 and May 8, 2026, comparing the mobile network performance of Airtel, BSNL, Reliance Jio (RJIL), and Vodafone Idea (VIL). The assessment covered 414.2 km of city routes, 10 km of coastal routes, 12 hotspot locations, and 6.5 km of walk tests, evaluating voice quality, coverage, and mobile broadband performance.
Reliance Jio emerged as the top-performing operator for mobile data services. The operator recorded the highest average download speed of 294.88 Mbps, more than double Airtel’s 139.44 Mbps. BSNL delivered 10.73 Mbps, while Vodafone Idea recorded 18.85 Mbps. In upload performance, Airtel narrowly led with 23.36 Mbps, followed closely by Reliance Jio at 22.81 Mbps. Vodafone Idea achieved 8.18 Mbps, while BSNL recorded 3.78 Mbps.
Coverage testing also favored Reliance Jio. During voice testing in auto-selection mode across 5G, 4G, 3G, and 2G networks, Jio recorded the fewest poor signal strength samples at 1,252 out of 45,532 collected samples. Airtel and Vodafone Idea each registered 2,105 poor signal samples out of 46,617 and 47,035 samples respectively, while BSNL reported the highest coverage gap with 3,203 poor signal samples out of 46,207.
Reliance Jio also delivered the most reliable voice calling experience by recording zero dropped calls out of 421 successfully established calls. Airtel and Vodafone Idea each reported only one dropped call out of 419 and 421 established calls respectively, while BSNL registered 18 dropped calls out of 402 successfully established calls, the highest among all operators.
Voice quality measurements through call silence instances also highlighted Reliance Jio’s strong performance. Jio recorded only four call silence instances out of 405 established calls, outperforming Airtel, which reported six silence instances out of 403 calls. Vodafone Idea recorded 10 silence instances out of 404 calls, while BSNL reported 16 silence instances out of 368 calls.
The TRAI drive test covered key locations across Kasaragod district, including Manjeshwar, Uppala, Kumbla, Kasaragod, Kalnad, Kanhangad, Nileshwar, Cheruvathur, Thrikaripur, Cheemeni, Bheemanady, Rajapuram, Kuttikol, Panayal, Poinachi, Cherkala, Mulleria, Badiyadka, Seethangoli and Paivalike. The coastal drive covered the Kottapuram Boat Terminal, Azhithala, Medakkera Fishing Harbour, The Lotus Houseboat, Thaikadappuram Boat Jetty and Achamthuruthy.
Hotspot testing included Bekal Fort, Cheruvathur Bus Stand, CPCRI Kasaragod, District Collectorate Kasaragod, Government General Hospital Kasaragod, Kanhangad Railway Station, Kasaragod Municipality Office, Kasaragod New Bus Stand, Kasaragod Railway Station, KSRTC Bus Stand Kasaragod, Nileshwaram Market and Uppala Town Junction. Walk tests were conducted at Bekal Beach Promenade, Kanhangad Market, Kasaragod Beach Walkway and Kasaragod Railway Station.
Overall, TRAI’s May 2026 Independent Drive Test indicates that Reliance Jio delivered the best overall network performance in Kasaragod with industry-leading download speeds, the lowest coverage gaps, zero dropped calls and the fewest call silence instances. Airtel remained a strong competitor with high upload speeds and excellent voice reliability, Vodafone Idea offered stable voice performance but comparatively lower data speeds, while BSNL continued to lag behind private operators across coverage, voice quality and mobile broadband performance.
SHAFANA FAZAL
