The Indian telecommunication industry, with 621.28 million telephone(landline and mobile) subscribers and 584 million mobile phone connections as of March 2010,is the second largest telecommunication network in the world and the second largest in terms of number of wireless connections in the world. Telecommunication activities saw rapid growth in India starting at the dawn of the 21st century and since then, efforts have been made from both governmental and non-governmental organizations to further improve the telecommunication infrastructure. The eventual goal is to foster the development and widespread use of modern telecommunication technologies that will serve all segments of India’s culturally diverse society, and to transform it into a country of technologically aware people.[citation needed] The Indian Mobile subscriber base has increased in size by a factor of more than one-hundred since 2001 when the number of subscribers in the country was approximately 5 million to 584 million in March 2010. In the first quarter of 2010 there have been a record breaking 59.18 million mobile subscriber additions - More than twice as many added in China during the same period (29.5 million), which is currently leading with 780 million mobile subscribers as of March 2010.[citation needed]
As the fastest growing telecommunications industry in the world, it is projected that India will have a more than 1-billion mobile subscribers by 2015. Furthermore, projections by several leading global consultancies indicate that India’s the total number of subscribers will exceed China by 2019. The industry is expected to reach a size of Rs 344,921 crore (US$ 76.92 billion) by 2012 at a growth rate of over 26 per cent, and generate employment opportunities for about 10 million people during the same period. According to analysts, the sector would create direct employment for 2.8 million people and for 7 million indirectly.
