TRAI Mobile Network Quality Assessment for Sindhudurg District and Pune-Panaji Highway
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has released findings from an Independent Drive Test (IDT) conducted across Sindhudurg District in Maharashtra LSA during April 14-17, 2026. The assessment was conducted under the supervision of TRAI Regional Office Bengaluru using multiple advanced test handsets and real-time monitoring software systems to evaluate voice and data services quality across 2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G networks.
Testing Methodology and Scope
The drive test covered comprehensive routes including 451.7 km of city drives, 567.3 km of highway testing, 13 hotspot locations, and 8.5 km of walk tests. City drives covered Kunkeshwar, Devgad, Vadade, Kasal, Kudal, Sawantwadi, Vengurla, Tarkarli, Malvan, and Achra. Highway testing covered the Pune to Panaji route passing through Pirangut, Tamhini, Mangaon, Lonere, Poladpur, Khed, Tural, Sangameshwar, Rajapur, Talere, Kudal, and Goa Dabolim International Airport. Hotspot testing included 13 locations such as Chivla Beach, Devbagh Beach, various bus stands, market areas, temple areas, and beach locations. Walk tests were conducted in Kudal MIDC Area, Kudal Railway Station Area, Malvan Jetty to Dandi Beach Road, Sawantwadi Lake Periphery, and Vengurla Market Inner Roads.
Key Performance Metrics for Sindhudurg District
Coverage gap analysis showed Airtel had 8,630 poor signal samples out of 25,174 total samples, BSNL had 15,234 out of 45,856, RJIL had 11,473 out of 38,823, and VIL had 13,307 out of 35,311. Call drop rates were measured at 8 dropped calls out of 226 established calls for Airtel, 30/399 for BSNL, 21/364 for RJIL, and 24/327 for VIL. Call silence instances (＞3 seconds) were observed at 17 out of 218 calls for Airtel, 5/319 for BSNL, 26/330 for RJIL, and 11/292 for VIL.
Data performance in the district showed Airtel achieving average download speeds of 94.50 Mbps (5G/4G) and upload speeds of 17.62 Mbps. BSNL recorded 2.30 Mbps download and 1.62 Mbps upload on 4G networks. RJIL demonstrated the highest performance with 127.94 Mbps download and 11.35 Mbps upload (5G/4G), while VIL showed 20.51 Mbps download and 3.81 Mbps upload across 5G/4G/2G networks.
Highway Performance (Pune to Panaji)
On the highway route, coverage gaps were measured at 6,273 poor samples out of 43,980 for Airtel, 14,318/42,702 for BSNL, 4,189/46,229 for RJIL, and 5,897/45,418 for VIL. Call drop rates were 13/226 for Airtel, 34/226 for BSNL, 10/237 for RJIL, and 10/233 for VIL. Call silence instances occurred in 23/216 calls for Airtel, 9/195 for BSNL, 11/233 for RJIL, and 4/232 for VIL.
Data performance on the highway showed significant improvements, with Airtel achieving 97.74 Mbps download and 19.08 Mbps upload, BSNL at 5.07 Mbps download and 1.87 Mbps upload, RJIL reaching 209.96 Mbps download and 19.90 Mbps upload, and VIL recording 49.24 Mbps download and 11.33 Mbps upload.
The findings have been shared with respective telecom service providers for necessary corrective actions, and detailed reports are available on TRAI's website at www.trai.gov.in. For clarifications, stakeholders can contact TRAI's Bengaluru Regional Office via email at adv.bengaluru@trai.gov.in or telephone at +91-80-22865004.