Airtel now lights up Northern Sri Lanka

* Proudly announces the launch of services in Jaffna, Vavuniya and Mannar districts

* Completes the coverage expansion of its network footprint across the North and East of Sri Lanka

* Connects all major highways throughout Sri Lanka, with the A9 route now under its radar

* Increases All Island Retail and Customer Service touchpoints to over 25,000

Bharti Airtel Lanka, a subsidiary of Bharti Airtel, a leading global telecommunications company with operations in 19 countries across Asia and Africa, announced its foray into the Northern Province of Sri Lanka.

Now serving customers in Jaffna, Vavuniya and Mannar districts, Airtel completes the expansion of its network footprint deep into the Northern and also, the Eastern terrain of Sri Lanka. With the A9 – the main arterial route to the North also coming under its radar, Airtel now connects all major highways throughout the country.

Amali Nanayakkara, Managing Director/CEO of Bharti Airtel Lanka said, “We are honoured to serve the people of Northern Sri Lanka and connect customers deep from every nook and corner of the province to the rest of Sri Lanka and the world. We are also delighted to widen our network footprint for all customers to enhance their experience on Airtel. We would like to thank the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission, the Ministry of Defense, the Central Environmental, Urban Development and Civil Aviation Authorities as well as our managed partner Huawei and all vendor partners responsible for the deployment of passive infrastructure, for the support rendered in enabling us to connect all of Sri Lanka in less than 2 years sincethe launch.”

To provide greater accessibility of its services across the Northern Province, Airtel has enhanced its retail and service touchpoints and inaugurated dedicated Airtel Stores to supplement its current retail network. This increases Airtel’s overall retail strength across the island to well over 25,000.

Announcing the launch of its services, Airtel has also introduced a suite of innovative products and services especially for customers of the Northern Province. These range from attractive call rates and a host of services which also include an array of unbeatable IDD rates to North America, Australia, India and also, European countries like Switzerland, Sweden and Germany.

Bharti Airtel’s expansion into the North announces the completion of yet another significant milestone in its agenda to cover the entire addressable population of Sri Lanka. Having already surpassed its 5 year investment pledge of US$ 200 million in 2 years, the company has commissioned the fastest network rollout of its kind by any mobile operator in the country.

Photo caption: Airtel commenced services to the north of Sri Lanka with the ceremonial opening of its Airtel store in Jaffna. (From left): CEO & MD Bharti Airtel Lanka Ms. Amali Nanayakkara participating in the ceremony; addressing the distinguished guests present and handing over the first SIM to District Judge of Jaffna A. Premshankar.