Nationwide Outage Hits Vodafone Idea: Thousands Left Without Network
New Delhi | April 18, 2025 — Vodafone Idea (Vi) users across major Indian cities were left completely disconnected in the early hours of Friday after the telecom operator suffered a widespread network outage. Starting around 12:00 AM, the blackout affected thousands, leaving them unable to make calls, access the internet, or even receive essential OTPs for transactions.
According to outage tracking platform Downdetector, over 1,500 reports were logged by 1:02 AM, confirming the scale of the disruption. Users from Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata, and several other metro regions reported signal drops and total service failure. A significant portion of complaints—more than 25%—cited “no signal at all,” leading to widespread panic among those who depend on mobile networks for work, communication, and essential services.
Late-night internet activity is typically high in India, especially in urban areas, due to better speeds and fewer network interruptions. However, Friday’s unexpected crash left users in the lurch. Many complained that they couldn’t receive OTPs to complete digital payments, log in to banking apps, or even order food online during the outage.
It wasn’t until a few hours later that Vodafone Idea officially addressed the issue. In a public statement, the company said, “Our network services were briefly impacted in NCR during the early hours of Friday (April 18) due to a technical issue. The issue has been resolved and all services are now back to normal. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused and thank our users for their patience and understanding.”
The outage sparked frustration across social media platforms. Hashtags like #ViDown, #NoNetwork, and #VodafoneIdea began trending as users shared their grievances, with some questioning whether the company could continue to be relied upon for essential communication services.
The incident couldn’t have come at a worse time for Vodafone Idea. The telecom giant is already under pressure from mounting subscriber losses and a delayed 5G rollout. While Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel continue to expand their 5G networks and attract customers with faster, more reliable service, Vi has struggled to retain its existing base amid increasing competition.
Many users took to social platforms to threaten porting their numbers to rival telecoms, citing repeated outages and lack of accountability. The blackout is expected to further impact Vi’s reputation, especially among urban customers who heavily depend on 24/7 connectivity.
If Vodafone Idea hopes to compete in the evolving telecom market, experts suggest the company will need to invest in better infrastructure, faster rollout of next-gen tech, and more transparent communication with users in times of crisis. Otherwise, incidents like these could accelerate the already steady customer migration to its competitors.