As often happens in India, the process of getting 5G spectrum into the hands of the operators is proving a tortuous one. Initial auctions have been delayed in the face of operator hostility to high reserve prices, and requests to set a later date and allow their coffers to recover from recent investments and fines (see introductory article). Now the regulator, TRAI, has released a consultation paper that it hopes will ease the path to spectrum auctions in 2022, and kickstart 5G deployment, which is central to government economic and digital agendas. Operators may not be so quick to embrace 5G. They still have plenty of 4G investment to pay off, and though ARPUs have risen, recently, for the first…