Undersea Cables

Undersea Cables: India is gradually getting new undersea cable landing systems. The latest is Airtel’s 2Africa Pearls system, with investment from Meta, adding 100 terabits per second capacity to India’s international bandwidth. Earlier in 2024, the SEA-ME-WE-6 cable also landed in Chennai and Mumbai.

• About: Undersea cables are the main link connecting the world’s internet networks.

o They connect internet service providers and telecom operators in different countries.

o These are a few inches thick, heavily padded to withstand the hostile sea floor environment.

o Inside are strands of fiber optic cables carrying large volumes of data globally.

o About 600 cables exist globally (as per Goldman Sachs).

o 90% of data, 80% of world trade, and about $10 trillion in financial transactions and secure government information move through these cables.

• Capacity: Each modern cable supports several hundred gigabits per second, serving thousands of telecom users.

o The terrestrial network brings connectivity inland from the coast.

• India’s position: Two major cable landing hubs: Mumbai & Chennai.

o India also has two domestic cable systems: Chennai–Andaman and Nicobar Islands (CANI) & Kochi–Lakshadweep Islands Project.