Is internet down in my area today ?

Fixed internet: who builds the lines and who sells the plans

India does not have a single national wholesale network. Several operators own and operate their own last-mile fibre and backbone, while others commercialise retail plans on top of these footprints or via local partners.

• Infrastructure owners with national or multi-city fibre: Reliance Jio (JioFiber/AirFiber), Bharti Airtel (Airtel Xstream Fiber), BSNL (Bharat Fiber/FTTH).
• Large city-focused ISPs: ACT Fibernet, Hathway, You Broadband, Den Networks, Siti Networks.
• Resellers / local cable operators (LCOs): thousands of smaller ISPs sell broadband using leased backhaul and shared last-mile fibre.

Who built the network and how resilient is it?

• Long-haul and metro rings are built by Jio, Airtel, BSNL and private utilities.
• Resilience is uneven: big cities have redundant paths; smaller towns often depend on a single duct where fibre cuts are common.
• The regulator TRAI and the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) enforce service quality standards on uptime and repair time, but power failures and roadwork remain the main outage causes.

Typical fixed-line outage patterns

• Fibre cut after road digging
• Power outage at local PoP/OLT
• Backhaul congestion or upgrade work
• Router or ONT malfunction causing “connected, no internet”

Mobile networks: ownership, coverage and where issues arise

Four operators own national mobile infrastructure:

• Reliance Jio – all-4G with fast-expanding 5G coverage
• Bharti Airtel – strong footprint with 5G Plus live in major cities
• Vodafone Idea (Vi) – 4G improving, 5G limited to select metros
• BSNL – legacy 2G/3G, 4G expanding nationwide

Why mobile feels “down”

• Tower power failure → site offline until battery drains
• Backhaul fibre cut → cluster blackout
• Congestion spikes at events → slow data or call drops
• Core software upgrades → brief outages
• Administrative restrictions → temporary local shutdowns

What to do during an outage: a precise checklist

A. Home broadband (fiber/FTTH)

• Identify scope
  • Test with a mobile connection. If mobile works, issue is at home or ISP.
  • Try a non-HTTPS site and a speed test.

• Check equipment
  • Verify LOS/OPTICAL light on ONT (red/off = fibre issue).
  • Power-cycle ONT then router (unplug 60 s, restart ONT first).

B. Mobile data and voice

• Reset basics
  • Toggle airplane mode 20 s, restart phone.
• Check apps
  • MyJio, Airtel Thanks, Vi App, MyBSNL → network alerts.
• Cross-check
  • Ask neighbours on same network; if both fail, outage confirmed.
• Contact support
  • Jio 198, Airtel 198/121, Vi 198/199, BSNL 1503.
• Stay connected
  • Use Wi-Fi calling, secondary SIM, or public hotspot.

Key takeaways

• Fixed broadband depends mainly on Jio, Airtel, BSNL and big city ISPs.
• Resilience is high in metros but fibre cuts remain frequent elsewhere.
• Mobile coverage is broad, yet tower power issues and backhaul cuts cause most “internet down” events.
• Use the operator apps and numbers above to confirm if it’s down today in your area and get restoration updates.