Its really easy to get a SIM card in India. All it needs is a bit of time and patience to get it. Read on so that you are not mislead by wrong information about this.
Mobile services in India are relatively cheap and there are a number of mobile service providers in India. The largest service providers are Airtel and JIO. Pre-paid cards are easy to acquire and are available at most Airports that international travellers travel to and from.
You will need to present your Passport and VISA when buying a SIM card. *Do note that the SIM will expire on the day of your exit as per your VISA. So if you are seeking a VISA exit extension, you will need to contact your service provider and provide them with the VIA extension approval to extend your SIM card.
SIMs are also easily available at a number of mom n pop stores across India. Your host or hotel reception will be happy to point you to the closest one.
When you are buying a SIM, do make sure of the following:
- Accept SIM cards that are sealed. DO NOT accept SIM cards that are already open as they might already have been used.
- Please request the counter to activate the card before you leave the counter.
- All cards come with a pre bundled 1 month service. Pre Bundled services come with unlimited calls in India, free roaming within India and usually 1 to 1.5 GB of upload/download per day. (you will hardly use SMS in India as it will quickly get filled with SPAM, but the pre bundle will include a few 100/1000 free SMSs)
Recharge of the SIM cards is easily done online or at a number of mom n pop shops close to wherever you are staying and shouldn’t cost you more than Rs. 250 per charge of 28 days. Quarterly packages could be Rs. 600 and upwards (depending mostly on how much upload/download you need per day). Most packages come with free outgoing calls in India and free roaming within India.