TRAI’s Eluru Drive Test Reveals 5G, 4G Network Quality Across Andhra Pradesh

The drive tests were undertaken by TRAI’s Regional Office, Hyderabad, using standardized testing instruments and established protocols.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has published its detailed Independent Drive Test (IDT) results for the Andhra Pradesh Licensed Service Area (LSA), focusing on extensive routes across Eluru City. Conducted between 11–13 November 2025, the tests assess real-world performance of leading telecom service providers (TSPs) across diverse usage environments including dense urban pockets, institutional hotspots, rural fringes, transport hubs and public areas.

The Eluru assessment covered 348.6 km of drive routes along with 8 key hotspot locations, capturing network performance across multiple technologies—2G, 3G, 4G and 5G—to reflect the true end-user experience regardless of handset capabilities.

Purpose and Methodology

The drive tests were undertaken by TRAI’s Regional Office, Hyderabad, using standardized testing instruments and established protocols. Measurements were captured under real-time conditions, enabling an objective performance comparison among Airtel, BSNL, RJIL (Reliance Jio), and VIL (Vodafone Idea).

The findings have been formally shared with all concerned TSPs for corrective measures and performance optimization.

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Voice Service Performance

Call Setup Success Rate (CSSR)

TRAI’s evaluation shows a high CSSR for most operators, indicating the reliability of initiating voice calls:

• Airtel: 100%

• BSNL: 92.84%

• RJIL: 100%

• VIL: 96.90%

Call Setup Time (CST)

Lower CST indicates faster call connection. TRAI recorded:

• Airtel: 0.95 sec

• BSNL: 2.42 sec

• RJIL: 0.73 sec

• VIL: 0.70 sec

Drop Call Rate (DCR)

• Airtel: 0.00%

• BSNL: 1.80%

• RJIL: 0.24%

• VIL: 0.00%

Call Silence/Mute Rate

Measured on 4G/5G packet-switched networks:

• Airtel: 0.00%

• BSNL: 3.85%

• RJIL: 0.00%

• VIL: 0.64%

Mean Opinion Score (MOS) – Voice Quality

• Airtel: 3.98

• BSNL: 2.56

• RJIL: 3.87

• VIL: 3.84

Poor Signal Strength Observation

• Airtel: 3.42%

• BSNL: 20.12%

• RJIL: 4.11%

• VIL: 14%

BSNL and VIL exhibited comparatively higher poor-signal zones, indicating network coverage gaps requiring improvement.

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Data Service Performance

Overall Download Speeds

• Airtel (5G/4G): 151.23 Mbps

• BSNL (4G/3G/2G): 6.20 Mbps

• RJIL (5G/4G): 250.84 Mbps

• VIL (4G/2G): 22.87 Mbps

Overall Upload Speeds

• Airtel: 21.61 Mbps

• BSNL: 4.89 Mbps

• RJIL: 20.45 Mbps

• VIL: 4.85 Mbps

Latency (50th Percentile)

• RJIL: 23.21 ms (Lowest latency, suitable for real-time apps)

• BSNL: 41.87 ms

• Airtel: 45.12 ms

• VIL: 57.05 ms

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Hotspot Data Performance (Mbps)

Airtel

• 4G: DL 24.68 | UL 10.94

• 5G: DL 131.67 | UL 24.45

BSNL

• 4G: DL 5.91 | UL 12.70

RJIL

• 4G: DL 51.37 | UL 9.11

• 5G: DL 315.86 | UL 21.59

VIL

• 4G: DL 21.18 | UL 5.87

RJIL demonstrated the strongest 5G performance among all TSPs in hotspot locations.

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Geographical Coverage

The comprehensive drive test spanned important localities around Eluru such as: Narsapur, Dagguluru, Bhimavaram, Pippara, Tadepalligudem, Gundugolanu, Jangareddigudem, Chintalapudi, Lingapalem, Vijayari, Denduluru, Pangidigudem, Kamavarapu, Kaikaluru, Kalidindi, and Mogalturu, ensuring diverse terrain assessments.

Hotspot evaluations were carried out at:

1. APSRTC Bus Stand, Narsapuram

2. Collector Office, Eluru

3. C.R. Reddy College of Engineering

4. Eluru Bus Station

5. Eluru Railway Station

6. Govt. Hospital, Eluru

7. Jangareddygudem Bus Stand

8. Somaramam Sri Someswara Swamy Temple

 

TRAI’s November 2025 IDT results highlight varying levels of performance among operators. While Airtel and RJIL show strong voice and data metrics, BSNL and VIL reflect coverage and speed gaps in several zones. The insights aim to help both consumers make informed choices and TSPs take corrective actions to enhance network quality.

The full detailed report is available on the TRAI website (www.trai.gov.in). For official clarifications, stakeholders may contact Shri B. Praveen Kumar, Advisor, TRAI Regional Office Hyderabad, via email at adv.hyderabad@trai.gov.in or telephone +91-40-23000761.