Vodafone Idea (Vi) announced the launch of its 5G services in Kochi, Kerala, on Tuesday, August 19, 2025, followed by a rollout in Thiruvananthapuram starting Wednesday, August 20, 2025. These launches come after Vi’s 5G debut in Agra on August 12, 2025. Vi also recently launched its 5G services in Kozhikode and Malappuram. “This expansion is part of Vi’s ongoing 5G rollout across many cities, in its 17 priority circles where it has acquired 5G spectrum,” Vodafone Idea announced on Monday, August 18, 2025.
Earlier, Vi introduced 5G services in Mumbai, Delhi–NCR, Bangalore, Mysuru, Nagpur, Chandigarh, Patna, Jaipur, Sonipat, Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Surat, Vadodara, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Nashik, Meerut, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Vishakhapatnam, Madurai and Agra as part of its phased 5G expansion. Agra became the second city in Uttar Pradesh to experience Vi’s next-gen connectivity, following the launch in Meerut a few days earlier.
Introductory Unlimited 5G Data Offer
Vi said its users in Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram, and Agra with 5G-enabled devices can access Vi 5G services. As an introductory offer, Vi is providing unlimited 5G data to users on plans starting from Rs 299. Customers can enjoy high-definition streaming, gaming, video conferencing, faster downloads, and real-time cloud access.
Commenting on the launch, George Mathew V, Business Head – Kerala, Vodafone Idea, said: “As we launch Vi 5G in Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram, we are excited to bring the future of connectivity to the four key cities of Kerala. With our next-gen 5G alongside our robust 4G services, we aim to provide more options and an enhanced experience to our users. We are committed to systematically expanding our 5G footprint across Kerala, in line with growing demand and 5G handset adoption.”
Commenting on the launch, Sumit Agarwal, Circle Business Head – UP & Uttarakhand, Vodafone Idea, said: “As we launch Vi 5G in Agra, we are excited to bring the future of connectivity to this historic and culturally rich city. With our next-gen 5G alongside our robust 4G services, we aim to provide more options and an enhanced experience to our users. We are committed to systematically expanding our 5G footprint across Uttar Pradesh, in line with growing demand and 5G handset adoption.”
In two separate announcements, Vi said it has partnered with Ericsson in Kerala and Nokia in Uttar Pradesh to deploy advanced, energy-efficient infrastructure, while implementing AI-powered Self-Organizing Networks (SON) to automatically optimize network performance.
Network Upgrades in Tamil Nadu
Alongside its 5G rollout, Vi said it has also significantly upgraded its 4G network in Kerala. Vi launched 4G services in the Lakshadweep islands in November last year. Since March 2024, it has deployed 900 MHz spectrum on over 1,400 sites to strengthen indoor coverage, deployed 2100 MHz spectrum on 4,300 sites, augmented capacity by layer addition, and expanded spectrum bandwidth, enhancing both reach and data traffic handling capabilities. These upgrades, implemented over 15 months from April 2024 to June 2025, have led to a 22 percent capacity increase in Kerala, Vodafone Idea announced on August 18, 2025.
Network Upgrades in Uttar Pradesh
Similarly, Vi has significantly upgraded its 4G network in Uttar Pradesh. Since March 2024, the telco has deployed 900 MHz spectrum on more than 14,000 sites to strengthen indoor coverage and 2100 MHz spectrum across more than 9,000 sites. Additionally, Vi has expanded its 2500 MHz capacity across more than 820 sites, enhancing both reach and data-handling capabilities. “These upgrades implemented over 15 months from April 2024 to June 2025 have led to a 43 percent capacity increase in Uttar Pradesh,” Vodafone Idea said on August 11, 2025.
Q1FY26 Network Highlights
In its quarterly report for Q1 ending June 30, 2025, Vi said it has launched 5G services in 22 cities across 13 circles.
“After the launch of 5G services in Mumbai in March 25, this quarter has witnessed a quick expansion of our 5G services to 13 circles. Our 5G services are now available in 22 cities, namely Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Mysuru, Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara, Rajkot, Nagpur, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Nashik, Chandigarh, Jaipur, Patna, Meerut, Agra, Sonipat, Kozhikode, Malappuram, Kochi, Madurai and Vizag. Further expansion to additional key cities across all 17 circles is planned by September 2025,” Vi said in a statement on August 14, 2025.
In addition to the 5G rollout, the telco said it continues to invest in expanding its high-speed broadband network coverage and capacity by adding new 4G sites and upgrading its core and transmission networks. “As a result, we increased our 4G population coverage to around 84 percent as of June 2025 compared to around 77 percent as of March, 2024. During the same period, our 4G data capacity expanded by around 36 percent, driving a around 24 percent improvement in 4G speeds. With our planned investments, the 4G population coverage is expected to increase to around 90 percent of the population,” the company added.
The company further said it added over 4,800 new unique 4G towers during the quarter. “We continued to strengthen the sub-GHz 900 MHz spectrum in the 16 circles, complemented by the deployment of around 9,200 sites and further enhanced through around 8,800 additional installations across 1800 MHz and 2100 MHz bands — key steps towards enabling faster data speeds and better indoor coverage on Vi GIGAnet. As of June 2025, Vi’s total broadband site count stood at around 516,200. Additionally, we have also deployed around 13,100 Massive MIMO sites and more than 12,300 small cells.”
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