March'07 : GSM subsribers 6.1 million

Indian GSM mobile phone service providers signed up a record 6.1 million customers in March, taking total users to 121.4 million, a telecoms industry body said.

The March increase was the highest-ever monthly rise and compared with 4.9 million new users in February, the Cellular Operators' Association of India said in a statement released late on Wednesday.

Bharti Airtel, India's top mobile provider, added 1.7 million customers in March, taking its user base to 37.1 million.

State-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd., added 2.0 million customers, taking its user base to 27.4 million, while Hutchison Essar Ltd's 1.1 million new customers lifted its user base to 26.4 million.

The Association represents nine carriers offering wireless services based on the widely prevalent GSM platform.

Reliance Communications is India's second largest mobile services provider, but most of its subscribers are on the CDMA platform.