The Indian cable industry is facing a significant challenge due to the mounting tensions in the Red Sea, which is a critical route for connecting India to Europe, Africa, and Southeast Asia through high-capacity submarine cables. The attacks by Houthi rebels have threatened the global internet infrastructure, and Indian operators are compelled to rethink and strengthen their undersea cable strategies to avoid service blackouts and maintain connectivity.
To mitigate the risks, Indian operators are investing heavily in building redundancies, including purchasing double the number of fibre pairs on global routes and exploring land-based cable routes through sovereign states to bypass the high-risk sea passage. For instance, Bharti Airtel has boosted its global capacity by landing the new SEA-ME-WE 6 cable in Chennai and Mumbai, and has also invested in other large systems like 2Africa Pearls. Additionally, operators are partnering with international networks and planning alternative corridors, such as the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor, which aims to create multimodal connections that combine terrestrial and undersea fibre to sidestep volatile maritime choke points.
The industry experts emphasize the need for diversifying routes and preparing for persistent instability in the Red Sea. The challenges faced by cable operators include the increased frequency of cable cuts, longer repair times due to conflict, and the lack of indigenous cable repair vessels, leading to long delays when sourcing and dispatching foreign maintenance ships. To address these challenges, operators like Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio are investing in new cable projects to expand geographical diversity and minimize risk.
The industry and regulators stress the importance of classifying subsea cables as critical infrastructure, improving domestic repair capacity, and creating cable corridors away from fishing zones to further reduce vulnerabilities. Incidents like anchor dragging and attacks are often exacerbated by dense maritime traffic, and the industry is calling for measures to prevent such incidents. Furthermore, the government is also urged to provide support and incentives to promote the development of indigenous cable repair vessels and to encourage investment in the cable industry.
In conclusion, the Indian cable industry is taking proactive steps to address the challenges posed by the tensions in the Red Sea. By investing in redundancies. partnering with international networks. and planning alternative corridors, operators are working to minimize the risks and ensure the reliability of India’s digital economy. The industry and regulators must continue to work together to address the challenges and promote the development of a resilient and secure cable infrastructure. With the increasing importance of digital connectivity, the Indian cable industry must be prepared to adapt to the evolving landscape and ensure that the country’s digital economy remains connected and secure.