A latest report by the Internet & Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) showed that rural India, for the first time has more internet users than those in the urban parts of the country.

As of last November, there were 227 million active internet users in rural areas which is 10% more than around 205 million in urban areas. In total, India had 504 million active internet users, Hindustan Times reported.

Approximately 71 million children aged between 5-11 years in India access the Internet on devices of their family members, constituting nearly 14% of the country’s active Internet user base of over 500 million, IAMAI’s ‘Digital in India’ report found.

The report is based on the data curated by Neilson, according to IRS (Indian Readership Survey). It stated, ‘Of the overall Internet population, 433 million are of the age of 12 years and above, and 71 million are in the age bracket of 5-11 years who access the Internet on the devices of family members.’

Active internet users are defined as those who use the internet at least once a month. According to the report, the number of people actively accessing the internet on a daily basis has increased by 30 million in rural India since March 2019.

The report also highlighted a greater increase in female internet users (by 21%) as compared to male internet users (by 9%).

The growth in India’s internet users, especially in the rural areas has witnessed a boost majorly because of cheap data plans and accessibility to affordable services facilitated by the internet. The preferred device for accessing the internet was mobile in both urban and rural areas.

India has the second largest internet user market after China, which has about 850 million users. India’s internet penetration rate, which determines the relationship between the number of internet users and its demographic data, indicating the portion of the population having access to the internet is at 40 percent.

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