TRAI Releases Consultation Paper on “Proliferation of Public Wi-Fi Networks in India"

• TRAI floated a consultation paper on 27 April 2026 to assess why public Wi-Fi roll-out (esp. PM-WANI) has stagnated far below the National Digital Communications Policy (NDCP), 2018 target of 10 million hotspots by 2022.
• Examines authorisation, authentication, roaming and billing interoperability, sustainable revenue models, and stakeholder roles (Centre/State/local bodies/TSPs/ISPs/private players).
• UPSC relevance: intersection of Digital India, last-mile broadband equity, telecom regulation under the new Telecommunications Act, 2023, and rural digital divide.