Nick Read weighs the all-important question: Has India stopped being ‘the most painful market’ to operate a telecom? Just as Vodafone Idea Ltd. was about to drown under the weight of its $30 billion debt, India has thrown a lifeline to the U.K. 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. A moratorium on New Delhi’s bloated back-fee claims, extra time to pay for the spectrum purchased in past auctions, and a relief from onerous bank guarantees add up to at least 316 billion rupees ($4.3 billion) in liquidity support, according to Investec Capital Services. That would keep Vodafone Idea going, though stabilizing a business that has lost more than ...