TRAI Mobile Network Quality Assessment for Gorakhpur Region
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) released findings from an Independent Drive Test (IDT) conducted during 4th to 8th May 2026 across Gorakhpur city and the Lucknow to Gorakhpur railway route under the UPE LSA. The assessment aimed to verify real-time quality of mobile network services (voice and data) provided by Telecom Service Providers (TSPs) by measuring key Quality of Service parameters including coverage, call drop rate, call setup success rate, and data download/upload throughput.
The comprehensive testing covered 342.1 kilometers of city driving, 296.3 kilometers of railway route, 11 hotspot locations, and 3.7 kilometers of walk tests. Specific areas assessed included Gorakhnath, Jhungiya, Ratanpur, Pipraich, Rampur Buzurg, Bhathat, Mangalpur, Delhi Public School Gorakhpur, Govindpur, Kaalesar, Belghat, Madapar, Gorakhpur Airport, Taramandal, Ramjanki Nagar, and Shahpur. Hotspot testing included AIIMS, Baba Raghav Das Medical College, Gorakhnath Temple, Gorakhpur Junction railway station, and several educational institutions and commercial centers.
Network Performance Results
For Gorakhpur city and nearby areas, coverage gap analysis (samples with signal strength below minimum prescribed levels) showed Airtel had 589 poor signals out of 51,058 samples (1.15%), BSNL 13,582 out of 48,601 samples (27.94%), RJIL 623 out of 50,514 samples (1.23%), and VIL 569 out of 50,572 samples (1.13%). On the Lucknow-Gorakhpur railway route, coverage gaps were significantly higher: Airtel 1,011/15,568 (6.49%), BSNL 6,247/13,622 (45.86%), RJIL 450/15,645 (2.88%), and VIL 1,163/15,449 (7.53%).
Call drop rates in Gorakhpur city were minimal for most providers: Airtel 1 dropped call out of 453 established (0.22%), BSNL 22/431 (5.10%), RJIL 2/454 (0.44%), and VIL 4/453 (0.88%). On the railway route, drop rates increased: Airtel 2/81 (2.47%), BSNL 25/78 (32.05%), RJIL 4/82 (4.88%), and VIL 2/79 (2.53%).
Call silence instances (silence >3 seconds) in Gorakhpur were recorded for Airtel (18 instances in 440 calls), RJIL (6 in 439 calls), and VIL (18 in 449 calls), with no data available for BSNL.
Data Performance Metrics
Data download throughput in Gorakhpur showed significant variation: Airtel averaged 116.48 Mbps (against declared 49 Mbps), BSNL 5.54 Mbps (declared 3.46 Mbps), RJIL 204.44 Mbps (declared 15 Mbps), and VIL 64.50 Mbps (declared 15 Mbps). On the railway route, download speeds were: Airtel 38.73 Mbps, BSNL 5.53 Mbps, RJIL 66.38 Mbps, and VIL 28.51 Mbps.
Upload performance in Gorakhpur measured: Airtel 21.49 Mbps (declared 8 Mbps), BSNL 2.67 Mbps (declared 2.64 Mbps), RJIL 19.74 Mbps (declared 7 Mbps), and VIL 14.83 Mbps (declared 8 Mbps). Railway route upload speeds were: Airtel 10.28 Mbps, BSNL 3.05 Mbps, RJIL 10.79 Mbps, and VIL 7.56 Mbps.
The findings have been shared with respective TSPs for necessary corrective actions, and detailed reports are available on TRAI's website. The assessment was conducted under the supervision of TRAI Regional Office Bhopal using advanced drive test equipment and software systems to capture network performance across 2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G technologies.