Airtel spearheading 5G in India, conducts first 5G demo in 700 MHz band with Nokia

"Today, we are delighted to conduct India's first 5G demo in the coveted 700 MHz band in the city to showcase the power of this technology standard. We believe that with the right pricing of 5G spectrum in the upcoming auctions, India can unlock the digital dividend and build a truly connected society with broadband for all," said Randeep Singh Sekhon, CTO, Bharti Airtel.

The latest 5G demo was conducted on the outskirts of Kolkata, making it the first 5G trial in Eastern India. It underscores the potential of the next-gen wireless technology to take mobile broadband coverage to even the remotest corners of the country.

As part of the trial, Airtel utilized equipment from Nokia's 5G portfolio, including Nokia AirScale radios and standalone (SA) core, achieving high-speed wireless broadband network coverage of 40 Km between two 3GPP standard 5G sites in real-life conditions.

Earlier this year, Airtel demonstrated the first cloud gaming experience on 5G and earlier this month, the company also rolled out the #5GforBusiness initiative to demonstrate a wide range of enterprise-grade use cases using high speed and low latency networks.

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has allotted test spectrum in multiple bands to Airtel for the validation of 5G technology and use cases.