A woman speaking on her mobile phone walks past a bus stop with an advertisement for mobile carrier Vodafone Idea in Mumbai on September 16, 2021. - India's ailing mobile carriers will be allowed to delay paying billions of dollars in spectrum and licensing fees, the government said on September 15, with Vodafone's struggling local unit in dire need of the relief. - AFP
JUST as Vodafone Idea Ltd was about to drown under the weight of its US$30bil (RM125bil) debt, India has thrown a lifeline to the United Kingdom operator’s local joint venture.
The rescue is only one of the tea leaves group CEO Nick Read will read as he weighs the all-important question: Has India stopped being what Deutsche Bank AG analysts recently described as “the most painful market” to operate a telecom? The answer will decide if it’s time to make a fresh play for the 1.4-billion-person market.
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