TRAI releases results of mobile network quality tests in Leh, Nubra Valley and Pangong

What has happened

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has released the results of Independent Drive Tests (IDT) carried out to check mobile network quality in Leh and nearby areas. The tests were conducted in August 2026 under the Jammu and Kashmir LSA, and the results were released on 30 October 2026.

TRAI is the regulator for the telecom sector, the body that keeps a watch on mobile companies’ services. The purpose of the exercise was to see how the voice and data services offered by telecom service providers actually perform on the ground.

How and where the tests were done

TRAI carried out the tests through its appointed agency between 17 and 21 August 2026. These included a 62.6 km city drive, a 396.3 km highway drive, a 1.1 km walk test, 07 hotspot locations and inter-operator calling at one location. All tests were held under the supervision of TRAI’s Delhi regional office.

SIM cards of all companies were used, and live voice and data sessions were run on 2G, 3G, 4G and 5G networks. The city drive covered areas such as Lukjung, Tsati, Yurtung, Kushok Bakula Rimpochee Airport, Leh Palace, Shankar Gompa, Leh, Choglamsar and Spituk. Hotspots included Army Hospital, Hundar, Karigar Bazar, EJM College, Gurudwara Shri Pathar Sahib, Leh Airport, Leh Market and SNM Hospital. The walk test was held at Leh Market on 17 August 2026.

What the results show

The report gives separate results for four routes. In Leh, Nubra Valley and the Pangong area, average download speed was 1265 Mbps for Airtel (5G), 8.00 Mbps for BSNL (4G) and 267.13 Mbps for RJIL (5G).

On the Leh to Nubra Valley highway, average download speed was 109.57 Mbps for Airtel (5G), 16.39 Mbps for BSNL (4G) and 122.16 Mbps for RJIL (5G). On the Nubra Valley to Pangong highway, the figures were 80.59 Mbps for Airtel, 8.86 Mbps for BSNL and 44.48 Mbps for RJIL. On the Shakti to Sangam highway, average download speed was 96.97 Mbps for Airtel (5G), 6.00 Mbps for BSNL (4G) and 203.25 Mbps for RJIL (5G).

The report also gives route-wise figures for coverage gap, dropped calls and call silence instances. Coverage gap means the share of samples where signal strength was below the minimum level set for that technology. The locations of dropped calls and call silence instances can be seen on the maps in the report by clicking on the red dots.

What happens next

The results of the report have been shared with the concerned companies so they can take necessary action. TRAI also said the observations in the report represent the companies’ performance in the tested area or route on the day and time the tests were conducted.

The detailed report is available on TRAI’s website www.trai.gov.in. For clarifications or more information, you can email [email protected] or contact TRAI’s regional office in Delhi at +91-11-20907772.