Vodafone Idea followed Bharti Airtel in increasing prepaid tariffs, offering nearly identical plans as its rival which raised rates by 20 per cent to 25 per cent.

In a statement, Vodafone Idea noted the new plans aim to begin improving ARPU as part of a broader effort to relieve financial strains being felt across the industry. The plans take effect on 25 November.

The operator added the tariffs will allow it to continue improving its network and it is committed to accelerating the government’s Digital India vision.

Monthly prepaid plans range from INR99 ($1.33) for 200MB of data, a 25 per cent increase to INR359 for 2GB a day and unlimited calling, up 20 per cent.

An annual plan with unlimited calling, 100 daily SMS and 1.5GB of daily data rose 21 per cent to INR2,899.

Data top-ups offers for 28 days now range from INR58 for 3GB to INR298 for 50GB, up 21 per cent and 19 per cent respectively.

The operator’s ARPU declined 8.4 per cent year-on-year to INR109 in its fiscal Q2 2022 (ending 30 September).