- With emphasis on information technology-led cutting-edge solutions/applications defining the modern-day world affairs, including high-tech warfare, the countries are not averse to pumping in humongous investments to spruce up their defence capabilities and civilian infrastructural requirements. The revolutionary inventions, innovations, developments, and growth on several fronts, especially digitalization endeavours, have meant that every country worth its weight is not flinching one bit from looking at ways and means to consolidate its position to prepare for any eventualities. Space technology has evolved into one of the most critical components in modern-day warfare, hugely supplementing conventional military power that is still considered relevant.
PC: LinkedIn
- Since cutting-edge technologies have become an inalienable part of the geostrategic necessities of the world, it goes without saying that tremendous emphasis is being laid on further strengthening digital infrastructure like never before. Mind you, cyberspace and cyberworld are redefining the way policymakers are formulating strategies in commensurate with the fast-changing equations all around. As such, the internet has become integral to not only defence but also business and entertainment as well, making it absolutely inevitable to step up further investment in undersea cables. Indian leadership must be making every effort to ensure sufficient investments are earmarked for this critical aspect without any reservations.
PC: Tom’s Guide
- As you would have noticed, for a few hours last week, our internet felt slower, videos buffered, and social media didn’t update at the speed of thought. The problem was identified as undersea cable damage near Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Sabotage by Yemen’s Houthis was suspected but has not been confirmed yet. Of course, everybody moved on quickly because, after dipping to 40%, network connectivity in India bounced back to the 90% level. This shows the progress in internet infrastructure over the years. When a careless ship’s anchor had ripped an internet cable off Egypt’s coast in Jan 2008, 75mn people – 60mn of them in India – had experienced the internet blackout. BPOs and other businesses were left gasping for data.
PC: CircleID
- Rerouting took a long time because there weren’t enough cables. Today, there are around 600 cables globally, up from 380 in 2019, so damage to one or two isn’t a catastrophe. But while the undersea cable network and capacity are expanding rapidly, so are the number of users and data consumption. That’s why securing access to the internet’s pipelines has become a strategic need. Indian players like Tata, Reliance, and Bharti Airtel are already invested in undersea cable networks, but as late as 2022, there were only 17 cables and 14 landing stations for the whole country, 1% of all the landing stations in the world. Cable-laying is slow work, so India should pursue it aggressively, starting now, for the sake of our data backbone.
