New Delhi, April 28 -- India's push to expand public Wi-Fi may be running into a problem: users expect it to be free, making it hard for service providers to build a sustainable business around it, said the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), in a consultation paper released on Monday. In the paper, the regulator cited commercial viability as a key reason why deployments have lagged targets. The National Digital Communications Policy (NDCP) 2018 had envisioned 10 million public Wi-Fi hotspots by 2022, but actual deployments remain far lower. As of April 2026, around 4.1 lakh hotspots have been deployed under the PM-WANI framework. "India's current Public Wi-Fi footprint remains inadequate when viewed against its vast geography, diverse terrain, and the scale of demand from the world's most populous country, having one of the largest youth populations," TRAI added in the paper, which explores more sustainable and scalable models, potentially involving public-private partnerships (PPPs), to expand connectivity, and support growing demand from data-heavy and AI-driven services. TRAI has invited written comments on the consultation paper from the stakeholders by May 25, and counter-comments by June 8. "The widespread expectation of 'free Wi-Fi' acts as a significant psychological and economic barrier," TRAI said, noting that even small charges of Rs.5 to Rs.10 for Wi-Fi often face resistance from users. This, it added, "creates an unviable business case" for providers operating on paid or free-mium models. The regulator said Indian consumers, who have access to cheap 4G and 5G services, increasingly view internet access as a free commodity. As a result, public Wi-Fi, especially when paid, struggles to compete with mobile data. TRAI also flagged user behaviour as another major hurdle. Mobile data offers a seamless, always-on experience, while public Wi-Fi, particularly under decentralised models like PM-WANI , the Centre's flagship public Wi-Fi initiative, involves multiple steps such as scanning for networks, logging in via OTPs, and purchasing vouchers....