BHARTI AIRTEL LTD IS ONE OF THE LARGEST MOBILE TELECOMS PROVIDERS IN INDIA (26.5% MARKET SHARE). IN AUGUST 2006 THE COMPANY AWARDED ERICSSON AN EXTENSION TO THE EXISTING CONTRACT OF US$1BN TO UPGRADE AND DEVELOP ITS GSM/GPRS NETWORK. BHARTI'S MOBILE SUBSCRIBER BASE IS NOW JUST SHY OF 25 MILLION. THE CARRIER ADDED 1.26 MILLION MOBILE SUBSCRIBERS IN JULY 2006 ALONE, BRINGING THE TOTAL TO 24.34 MILLION. AS A WHOLE THE INDIAN MOBILE MARKET IS GROWING BY 5% PER YEAR.