Delhi has more mobile connections than people

Mobile phone users in the Capital are increasing at an incredible rate, so says a government statistics. On an average, every adult Delhiite has not one, but at least two mobile phones and almost 17,000 new mobile subscribers add to the network every day. Atul Mathur reports.

Mobile phone users in the Capital are increasing at an incredible rate, so says a government statistics. On an average, every adult Delhiite has not one, but at least two mobile phones and almost 17,000 new mobile subscribers add to the network every day.

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The startling figures have been published in the Delhi Statistical Handbook released by the Delhi government's department of economics and statistics on Wednesday.

According to the data, the number of mobile phone connections reached 2.83 crore by March 31, 2010.

With Delhi's population touching 1.82 crore and almost one third population below the age of 14 years - which is unlikely to have their own mobile phones - 2.83 crore mobile connections are divided among just 1.2 crore population of Delhi.

"The number of mobile phone users in 2008 (March 31, 2008) was 1.62 crore and it increased to 2.19 crore in 2009," said B K Sharma, director, statistics.

"In the past one year, more than 64 lakh new mobile phone users added to the network."

"In 2010, the landline connections stands at 27.1 lakh, less than two lakh more of 2009 figure of 25.2 lakh," Sharma said.