Airtel removes Rs 299, Rs 579, Rs 619, Rs 649 Plans: Here's what customers pay now

The latest changes do not amount to a blanket increase across Airtel's prepaid plans. Instead, the company has made changes to selected plans, with the next available options in the affected categories costing around 5% to 16% more.Haier is a well-known home appliances and consumer electronics company. (Photo: AFP)Bharti Airtel has made changes to its prepaid plans, discontinuing four packs priced at Rs 299, Rs 579, Rs 619 and Rs 649 across India. The move includes a price increase for customers who used the Rs 299 plan, which has now been replaced by a Rs 349 pack.The changes come as Airtel looks to simplify its prepaid offerings and improve its average revenue per user (ARPU). The company has been pushing for a change in telecom pricing, with customers who use more data paying more instead of operators raising prices across all plans.Rs 299 PLAN REPLACED BY Rs 349 PACKThe biggest change is at the Rs 299 price point. Airtel has discontinued the plan and introduced the Rs 349 pack as the next option.The Rs 349 plan costs about 16% more than the earlier Rs 299 pack. However, it also offers more data. The new plan provides 2GB of data per day for 28 days, compared with 1.5GB of daily data offered under the Rs 299 plan. For customers who mainly used the Rs 299 plan, this means a higher monthly bill, although they also get an additional 500MB of daily data.AIRTEL NARROWS ITS PREPAID PRICE OPTIONSAirtel has also removed the Rs 249 and Rs 299 options from its mid-tier prepaid range, reducing the number of choices available to consumers. The Rs 199 plan remains available and offers 2GB of data for 28 days. The next option is the Rs 219 pack, which provides 3GB of data for the same 28-day period.The changes mean consumers will now see fewer price points between the entry-level and higher-value prepaid plans.SELECTIVE PRICE INCREASE, NOT A BROAD TARIFF HIKEThe latest changes do not amount to a blanket increase across Airtel's prepaid plans. Instead, the company has made changes to selected plans, with the next available options in the affected categories costing around 5% to 16% more.This approach allows Airtel to raise prices in certain segments without increasing tariffs across its entire prepaid customer base at the same time.FOCUS ON HIGHER ARPUAirtel has been working towards improving its ARPU, a key measure of how much revenue a telecom company earns from each customer.The company's broader pricing strategy is aimed at getting customers who consume more data and services to pay more. Rather than relying only on across-the-board tariff hikes, Airtel has been looking at ways to create clearer differences between its plans based on usage.The latest changes appear to be part of that strategy. By removing some overlapping plans and pushing customers towards higher-priced options, Airtel can simplify its prepaid portfolio while also seeking to lift revenue per user.For consumers, however, the changes mean that some popular price points are no longer available, and customers looking for similar benefits may have to pay more.- EndsPublished By: Jasmine anandPublished On: Aug 12, 2026 18:14 IST