If the 5G in telecommunications was a five-act play, the first act unfolded two years ago when US President Donald Trump rallied the developed world around banning Huawei Technologies, especially its 5G tech. 

The second act is being enacted now as countries permit, one by one, the Chinese telecoms vendor to supply its 5G gear for the new network roll-out, pilot or otherwise. In December 2019, India allowed Huawei to participate in 5G trials, too. 

However, this act has a sub-plot to it. And it’s playing out within the closed doors of the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) in Delhi. 

AUTHOR

Seema Singh

Seema has over two decades of experience in journalism. Before starting The Ken, Seema wrote “Myth Breaker: Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw and the Story of Indian Biotech”, published by HarperCollins in May 2016. Prior to that, she was a senior editor and bureau chief for Bangalore with Forbes India, and before that she wrote for Mint. Seema has written for numerous international publications like IEEE-Spectrum, New Scientist, Cell and Newsweek. Seema is a Knight Science Journalism Fellow from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a MacArthur Foundation Research Grantee.

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