Airtel partners with Blinkit for 10-minute SIM card delivery

Bharti Airtel has entered into a strategic partnership with Blinkit to enable SIM card delivery to customers' doorsteps within 10 minutes—a move that marks the first such initiative by a telecom operator in India. The service has gone live in 16 cities, with phased expansion planned across additional geographies.

Under this partnership, users can order an Airtel SIM card,whether prepaid, postpaid, or through mobile number portability (MNP), via an online link and have it delivered in under ten minutes. A nominal convenience fee of Rs 49 applies to the rapid doorstep delivery. Airtel stated that customers can easily activate their SIM using Aadhaar-based KYC verification. Additionally, users can choose between prepaid and postpaid plans or begin the process of porting their existing number to the Airtel network. 

“While Airtel makes it easy for users to activate their SIM, complete self-KYC, and choose between prepaid and postpaid plans, Blinkit manages the delivery. Customers can also opt for number portability at their convenience,” said Albinder Dhindsa, Founder and CEO of Blinkit.

With plans to add more cities and towns over time, the business stated that the services are currently available in 16 cities, including Delhi, Gurugram, Faridabad, Sonipat, Ahmedabad, Surat, Chennai, Bhopal, Indore, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Pune, Lucknow, Jaipur, Kolkata, and Hyderabad.

Airtel customers can also access support through the Airtel Thanks app by visiting the Help Centre for assistance with any of these services. To ensure a smooth and hassle-free transition, SIM cards must be activated within 15 days of delivery, according to Airtel.

This initiative, which transitions a traditionally offline process into the quick-commerce space, marks a significant advancement in the digitisation of telecom services and last-mile convenience.