September 22nd, 2022: One year after the launch of Airtel Lanka’s industry-disrupting prepaid packs ‘Freedom’, the company announced a staggering 1.7 million users have switched to Airtel Freedom, as at the end of August 2022.

“We serve around three million customers in Sri Lanka, aided mainly by this unprecedented adoption of our Freedom packs. The overwhelming customer endorsement reaffirms our strategy of bringing simplicity and value through our products.” notes Airtel Lanka Managing Director/CEO Ashish Chandra.

Powered by Airtel’s world-class 5G-ready mobile broadband network, the telco has reimagined the overall offering and experience for customers, with a strong focus on ensuring value for money, and an advanced network experience. These factors undoubtedly resonate with most users, who are either data-heavy or call-heavy users.

Airtel Lanka’s initial innovation in facilitating unlimited, affordable access to the internet through Freedom Packs continued to evolve, with the telco introducing new world-class features to both its prepaid Freedom Packs and postpaid Freedom Plans Airtel also disrupted the local telco market with the entrance of the Freedom Unlimited Rs.749 package, which is aimed at prepaid users. For a very affordable cost, users can now make unlimited calls to any network, with unlimited access to favourite social media platforms such as Facebook, Messenger, WhatsApp, and stream superior quality videos on YouTube for 30 days in addition to receiving additional 30GB anytime date.

Airtel was also the first telco to introduce unlimited calls for any network for a postpaid customer through Unlimited 1098. Priced at Rs. 1,098, an Airtel user has access to unlimited calls to any network, 40GB anytime data and SMS facilities. Additionally, Airtel is also the only telco to offer data rollover service for postpaid customers, allowing up to 200GB to be carried onto the next month’s billing cycle, saving data and expenses for the end-consumer.

Airtel Lanka has been part of implementing many industry-firsts in Sri Lanka’s telco space, and was also the first to introduce unlimited calls in Sri Lanka, on calls made to the same network. With the launch of Airtel Freedom, the company offers its users the ultimate convenience for all their voice, SMS and data needs, offering even greater savings compared to the competition. With the introduction of Unlimited, Airtel Lanka undoubtedly serves as a clear trendsetter for the country’s telecommunications industry.

August 18th, 2022: In an effort to provide even greater value and choice to its valued customers, Airtel Lanka announced the launch of a new range of dedicated weekly Study and Work from Home (WFH) and Social Media (SM) packs in addition to its monthly packs. The new packs are launched to ensure that all users will continue to have access to their superior 4G network during the current crisis.

Airtel’s new weekly packs are designed to ensure that all users continue to benefit from affordable access to a superior 4G experience, at a time when internet access has become an absolute essential for all Sri Lankans.

“With the ongoing economic crisis, we knew we had to take every possible measure to ensure that pricing would not be an obstacle to customers who depend on our world class network to stay connected to their studies, work, friends and family. Our hope is that these new packs will help to ease their burden at this difficult time,” Airtel Lanka MD/CEO, Ashish Chandra stated.

With just Rs. 85, Airtel users can purchase a basic WFH pack to gain access to 7GB of data for MS Teams, Zoom, and Office 365, while Airtel’s Rs. 145 pack offers Unlimited Access to all three platforms, in addition to Google Classroom.

Meanwhile, the telco is also launching a new social media pack at just Rs. 128, which will provide unlimited access to Whatsapp, Facebook, Youtube and Facebook Messenger for 7 days.

Airtel’s launch of weekly Study, WFH and social packs follows the telco’s recent introduction of its Unlimited Freedom Packs, a first-of-its-kind telco product in the Sri Lankan market that provides users with unlimited free local voice calls to any operator and Social Media to its range of Freedom Plans, starting from as low as Rs. 749.

Airtel’s ‘Freedom Packs/Plans’ are backed by the telco’s single largest investment in Sri Lanka since its entry into the island in 2009. Airtel’s purpose-built 4G network promises a superior user experience including 99% buffer-free streaming, noticeably quicker loading times and improved indoor coverage with 4G signals. Notably, this state of the art tech infrastructure is also built on a 5G ready network.

• Lockdowns and the economic crisis has resulted in a sharp increase in mental health related issues
• A growing demand for chat based solutions aligned to the needs of Sri Lanka’s youth

The nation’s preferred telco among youth, Airtel Lanka in partnership with the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), announced a major expansion of the 1926 Mental Health Helpline to now include a dedicated Whatsapp service. Anyone in need of mental health assistance can now reach NIMH’s Mental Health Helpline via WhatsApp on 075 555 1926.

“The recent lockdowns and the increased isolation that it caused has led to an increase in mental health related issues. Hence, the need for a WhatsApp based solution is very much the need of the hour. The majority who reach out through the chat-line tend to be young Sri Lankans who are struggling to cope”

“Text messaging is of course a great solution, especially for young people, who tend to be more comfortable chatting instead of speaking, especially when starting a conversation with us, and we are grateful to the Airtel team for supporting our efforts to expand access to mental health,” NIMH Senior Consultant Psychiatrist, Dr. Pushpa Ranasinghe said.

Since going live on World Mental Health Day 2020, the text-based service alone has helped to initiate over 100 life-saving interventions, in addition to providing support, comfort and guidance to many individuals facing challenges with their mental health.

“Airtel is proud to continue supporting the incredible work being done by the team at NIMH, and we hope that the expansion of the 1926 service to Whatsapp will encourage even more Sri Lankans to reach out, knowing that there is always someone there to listen,” said Ashish Chandra, CEO/MD, Airtel Sri Lanka.

He noted that Airtel’s decision to expand the service to Whatsapp was a direct response to young users of the text-based service themselves who tend to show a clear preference for data over voice or text. The additional functionality enabled by the app could also open up new possibilities for the life-saving service – potentially including video-calls, sharing of prescriptions, and voice notes.

“With this latest expansion of the 1926 service, Airtel hopes to reiterate the need for an open and understanding culture around mental health that encourages more young people to reach out to professionals. This is particularly important when they are experiencing times of crisis and may benefit from guidance on their mental health concerns in a safe and anonymous environment. Ultimately, whether you or someone you know is going through a crisis, or just feel like you need a little support, the ability to easily reach out can make all the difference. We hope that by creating the spaces for these conversations to take place, we can help be a part of that change,” Ashish stated.

The expansion of the service, easily accessible for all Airtel users, and everyone on any
mobile network is as a result of the significant success of the Airtel-NIMH 1926 text-based helpline. The 1926 Mental Health Call Line and SMS Line continues to be free for all Airtel users.

In pursuit of that goal, Airtel announced that it would also be committing itself to raising awareness on mental health and all of the available NIMH 1926 helplines across its entire user base, leveraging Airtel’s social media platforms, and the My Airtel App.

Photo caption: (From Left) NIMH, Deputy Director, Dr. Arosha Wijewikrama, Ministry of Health, Additional Secretary – Medical Services, Dr. Sunil De Alwis, Ministry of Health, Secretary, Janaka S Chandraguptha, Airtel Lanka, CEO/Managing Director, Ashish Chandra, NIMH, Director, Dr. Dhammika Wijesinghe, NIMH, Senior Consultant Psychiatrist, Dr. Pushpa Ransinghe.

Sri Lanka’s youth focused-telco, Airtel Lanka, recently partnered with the College of Technology, Galle (COT, Galle) to support a new generation of tech-experts and entrepreneurs with learning and development in both technical and soft skills.

Through the partnership, Airtel Lanka will be providing 30 students from COT, Galle’s junior and senior batches with access to training and skills development, as well as new computers and equipment. Airtel will also be offering student’s real world experience through the establishment of a 6-12 month paid internship programme for the best and brightest final year students.

“Like many countries across the globe, Sri Lanka is facing a period of deep economic uncertainty. It is exactly these kind of moments in which all corporates must rally together in order optimize productivity, and uncover new opportunities for growth. We believe that the ICT and telco sector have an instrumental role to play in catalyzing this recovery.” Airtel Sri Lanka Managing Director/CEO, Ashish Chandra stated.

Ashish further stated, “To succeed, we need to train young Sri Lankans and equip them with the knowledge and tools they need to excel in these fields. This in turn will give rise to a new paradigm in rapid, decentralized economic development and job creation, across Sri Lanka. Our partnership with the College of Technology, Galle is another significant milestone in this vital journey,”

Leveraging Airtel’s existing relationships with strategic business partners like Huawei, students will also be provided with technical training on data communication, microwave installation and configuration, and BSS Networks. Additionally, COT, Galle’s graduates will also receive soft skills training and mentoring on the professional journey of telco engineers, personal brand building, expectations when entering the corporate world and practical advice on facing interviews, as well as opportunities to visit the Airtel Mobile Switching Centre (MSC) at Maligawatta to get a hands-on experience with core operational aspects of the telco industry.

Photo Caption: Team Airtel lends its support to students and teachers of College of Technology, Galle, with launch of internship programme and donation of computer equipment

Gone are the days where a user had to constantly check their mobile balance in the midst of some important conversations or be worried about higher cost for making a call outside of their network. In yet another historic industry first initiative, Airtel Lanka announced unlimited free local voice calls to any operator and Social Media to its range of Freedom Plans. Since the launch of Airtel Freedom, the telco has consistently been pushing for reforms that would enable free calls to all in order to provide a worry free calling experience.

This historic move provides true freedom for users wanting to make local calls to their friends and family without having to worry for the voice call charges. No matter what operator the call is made to, it’s absolutely free and unlimited.

“Especially in light of the current volatility that all Sri Lankans are grappling with, we hope that the launch of our Unlimited Plans will also help steer the industry towards delivering greater value to Sri Lanka’s vibrant mobile user base, in addition to providing them with the best value in the market” Airtel Sri Lanka CEO/MD, Ashish Chandra stated.

Airtel has been instrumental for many industry firsts in Sri Lanka, and was also the first to introduce Sri Lanka to unlimited on net calls (same operator). With the launch of Airtel Freedom, Airtel offered its users great convenience, with a single recharge, for all their usage with even greater savings compared to competition. With the introduction of unlimited free call to any operator, Airtel becomes a clear trend setter for the telecom industry.

“By updating our business model, we are working towards reshaping the Sri Lankan telco landscape towards greater competition, and customer-centric value. As a result we are the only network that can provide our customers with unlimited voice and social media, in addition to generous allocations for data outside of social media, meaning that a single recharge will still serve all of their monthly needs,” Ashish further explained.

Users can select from two price options of Rs 749 and Rs 1,249. Both packs allows Airtel users access to unlimited local voice calls to any network as well as unlimited Social Media (YouTube, Facebook, FB Messenger and WhatsApp). Additionally, Rs 749 provides 30GB of 4G anytime data whereas the Rs 1,249 pack offers 60GB of 4G anytime data. Both packs are valid for a period of 30 days and have additionally SMS benefits as well.

Airtel’s ‘Freedom Packs/Plans’ are backed by the telco’s single largest investment in Sri Lanka since its entry into the island in 2009. Airtel’s purpose-built 4G network promises a superior user experience including 99% buffer-free streaming, noticeably quicker loading times and improved indoor coverage with 4G signals. Notably, this state of the art tech infrastructure is also built on a 5G ready network.

Sri Lanka’s most preferred telco among youth, Airtel Lanka once again won recognition at the National Business Excellence Awards (NBEA).

Organized by the National Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka (NCCSL), Airtel was presented with the Merit award in the ‘Other Services/Other Sectors’ category. The award was in recognition of the telco’s continuous investments towards enhancing digital connectivity across the nation, while creating innovative and a rewarding customer experiences.

Commenting on the win, Airtel Lanka CEO and Managing Director, Ashish Chandra said, “It is an honour to be recognized among such a distinguished group of enterprises. The past year has been a lesson in the value of delivering excellence in all facets of business. While we are witnessing challenging times, we continue to believe in Sri Lanka’s potential and we look forward to creating value that positively impacts the nation’s economic progress.”

Notably Airtel has also previously been recognized in the same category in 2019.  The NBEA is one of Sri Lanka’s pioneering award competitions initiated by The National Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka. It has maintained a strong reputation as the premier national platform which recognizes the best of the best businesses in corporate excellence in Sri Lanka.

April 24, 2022: As a company recognised for being one of Asia’s Best Places to Work and boasting of a culture demonstrating great leadership, Airtel Lanka recently saw three of its department heads take home accolades at the recently concluded Great Manager Awards 2021, hosted by the Colombo Leadership Academy (CLA).

Through progressive manager development initiatives such as “Lead Right”, Airtel Lanka aims to advance its managers to become effective and transformational leaders. The company often engages in such initiatives through partnerships with local institutes and the Airtel Global Leadership Academy.

“While we are being proactive in our journey to convey excellence in our offerings, we also strive to nurture leadership and strategic expertise among our key managers and senior staff members. Today’s achievements certainly mark a milestone in our relentless efforts towards developing learned and multi-talented leaders,” commented Airtel Lanka Managing Director and CEO Ashish Chandra.

From Airtel Lanka’s Finance Department, Eranda Siriwardena – Head, Business Planning and Analysis and Fawaz Nizamdeen – Head, Contact Experience were awarded in the “Aligning Organisational Vision” category, while Duminda Akalanka – Senior Manager, Channel Accounting was awarded in the “Driving Results & Execution Excellence” category.

Airtel Lanka’s victory came following the successful recognition under two rounds of selection, where in the first round, a survey was conducted among each participant’s peers and subordinates. In the second round, the selected persons underwent interviews with the Governors of CLA.

These three participants stood out for their leadership styles, team management skills, strategy execution, focus on personal development and more.

Sharing his views on the victory, Eranda Siriwardena said that, “An effective strategy coupled with spot-on delegation of duties is a key winning factor seen at Airtel Lanka, and I am happy to have played a part in it.”

Fawaz Nizamdeen shared a similar remark to his win, “Without the support from management, that centres its operations on excellent customer satisfaction and a fantastic team that shares the same view, any business would fail to deliver a stellar customer experience.”

Furthermore, Duminda Akalanka noted, “I have always believed that relationships, maintained well over time, will bring about fruitful returns to all parties concerned. I am thankful to Airtel Lanka for accepting, supporting and nourishing my leadership which has in return brought us many successful long-term collaborations.”

On an individual level, the Great Manager Awards serves as an opportunity for each company to learn of its own managerial and leadership effectiveness quotient and assess itself when placed against the best in the country, identifying overall strengths and areas of development for the managerial pool within the company. In this there is also an opportunity to evolve higher engagement levels through building stronger managers and strengthen the manager community in the industry. The awards also serve the greater purpose of assessing the eco system of nurturing great managers and best practices amongst a wide spectrum of organizations in the country as a whole.

Photo caption (Left to right): Head – Contact Experience, Fawaz Nizamdeen, Head – Business Planning and Analysis, Eranda Siriwardena and Senior Manager – Channel Accounting, Duminda Akalanka

Bharti Airtel Lanka

Bharti Airtel Lanka commenced commercial operations of services in Sri Lanka in 2009 and was the fastest operator to reach 1 million customers. The Airtel Lanka offering of technology innovation and service excellence has seen rapid adoption rates among the Sri Lanka youth. Registered under the Board of Investment in Sri Lanka, Airtel Lanka provides digital mobile services which include voice, data and enterprise solutions and currently ranked the fastest 3G mobile network provider in Sri Lanka.

Shuts down its 3G data network; 2G (voice and text) services to continue uninterrupted

Airtel Lanka announced that it will be upgrading its network with additional LTE bandwidth and capabilities by shutting down 3G data services. This will allow Airtel Lanka’s 4G/5G services to be enhanced and improved, offering users a faster and consistent network experience. The move is said to result in upto 50% increase in data speeds and will also drastically reduce network traffic congestion.

The shutting down of 3G data services will take effect from 24^th June 2022. The telecom operator reiterated that its 2G network will continue to operate, allowing all its users, including the 2G and 3G handset customers to have uninterrupted access to voice and text message services.

Furthermore, Airtel confirms that a significant number of users have already migrated to 4G and are currently enjoying its benefits. To facilitate the remaining 3G only, data users to upgrade to 4G, Airtel has partnered with leading retailers to offer a range of affordable options for 4G-enabled devices across all price points. Additionally, all users who upgrade from a 3G only device to a 4G device will receive FREE 60GB anytime 4G data.

Airtel’s world-class 4G network around the island is also 5G ready and promises users a superior experience including 99% buffer-free streaming, noticeably quicker loading times and improved indoor coverage with 4G signals that never fail. Airtel offers 4G users a range of Freedom packs, each designed with affordability, reliability and quality in mind.

March 21, 2022: Airtel Lanka’s focused investment on upgrading skills of employees secured a Gold Award in the Territory Manager category, at the recently concluded National Sales Congress 2020 (NASCO).

Securing the award, Nuwan Fernando, Assistant Territory Sales Manager, Airtel Sri Lanka was praised for his successful interview with the SLIM appointed judges for NASCO 2020, as well as for his presentation on demonstrating success stories in potential, performance and strategic input. From a managerial perspective, Nuwan also demonstrated on the measures taken to empower his team and thereby his contribution to sustain the company’s reputation as a sought after employer of choice.

Due to the remarkable performance at the interview and winning Gold, Fernando was also part of the prestigious group “Best of the Best” – comprising of Gold Winners across all industries.

“Inculcating effective on-the-job training along with continuous learning and development initiatives with reputed institutes for our Sales team members, we were able to refresh their competencies and up-skilling in a timely manner. This has undoubtedly supported our candidates, and specifically Nuwan Fernando in this case, to perform well at awards evaluations,” commented Airtel Lanka Managing Director and CEO Ashish Chandra.

Airtel Lanka continuously strives to create a competitive platform to empower its workforce with progressive growth. Through awards programmes conceptualised in-house as well as reputed institutes, Airtel Lanka ensures a motivated and competitive mind set among the entire workforce.

SLIM NASCO, organised by the Sri Lanka Institute of Marketing, is the only award in Sri Lanka which rewards high performing individuals and provides national level recognition for their efforts and achievements in the sales fraternity.

Being recognised at this premier event for sales excellence, especially during a pandemic, provides the right motivation for sales professionals to achieve even greater heights in the future. All entries at the SLIM NASCO Awards are screened via an eminent panel of judges to select the best performers in the country. The only credible and respected award ceremony for sales professionals, SLIM NASCO has become a badge of honour for sales professionals and corporates.

About Bharti Airtel Lanka

Bharti Airtel Lanka commenced commercial operations of services in Sri Lanka in 2009 and was the fastest operator to reach 1 million customers. The Airtel Lanka offering of technology innovation and service excellence has seen rapid adoption rates among the Sri Lanka youth. Registered under the Board of Investment in Sri Lanka, Airtel Lanka provides digital mobile services which include voice, data and enterprise solutions and currently ranked the fastest 3G mobile network provider in Sri Lanka. To learn more, visit www.airtel.lk.

Driving a 4G network enhancement throughout the island, Airtel Lanka announced the completion of the expansion in the Uva Province, boosting coverage in Badulla and Moneragala districts.

The additional 4G sites will enhance user experience offering Internet speeds that are up to 4X faster with 50% better indoor coverage. Airtel’s 4G infrastructure is also 5G-ready, capable of transitioning to the new network with ease.

The 4G expansion that is currently underway island-wide will give a quantum jump of Airtel’s network experience to all Sri Lankans. Airtel’s 4G network is built on a triple layer network, which gives it a solid combination of coverage and capacity to deliver a superior experience.

From online learning to work-from-home to virtual socialising, every user from children to adults will be able to benefit from not having to face any more call drops, interruptions or coverage issues.

Users can also benefit from Airtel’s novel Freedom Packs, which not only gives access to Airtel’s robust 4G network, but also value with savings up to 80 percent from their mobile spend.