Submarine cable breakdown disrupts web connectivity in Bangladesh

Web customers in Bangladesh are at present experiencing disruptions following a breakdown within the SEA-ME-WE 5 submarine cable, the biggest provider of worldwide bandwidth to the nation. The incident occurred final night time and is predicted to take a minimum of 2 to three days to revive, as introduced by Mirza Kamal Ahmed, the managing director of Bangladesh Submarine Cables PLC (BSCPLC).

The disconnection was recognized at midnight, affecting worldwide bandwidth utilization in Bangladesh, which at present stands at round 5,200GBPS. Of this, greater than half, roughly 2,700 Gbps, is sourced by worldwide terrestrial cable (ITC) license holders importing bandwidth from India. The SEA-ME-WE 5 submarine cable, put in in Kuakata, contributes 1,700GBPS to the overall bandwidth.

The precise level of failure for the SEA-ME-WE 5 cable is positioned between Singapore and Malaysia, inflicting all circuits of the consortium members to go offline. “A ship will likely be mobilized to restore and restore the service. The whole operation will take a minimal of two to three days,” Ahmed said.

The SEA-ME-WE 5 stands as a vital 20,000km submarine cable community linking 17 nations by way of Factors-of-Presence from Singapore by the Center East, extending to France and Italy in Western Europe. The cable’s breakage occurred on its jap phase connecting Singapore, whereas the western connection to France stays unaffected and operational. Consequently, Bangladesh will obtain a diminished bandwidth of solely 100 Gbps out of the cable’s whole capability of 1,700 Gbps, highlighting the affect of the disruption on the nation’s web connectivity.

In response to the disruption, BSCPLC is actively in search of various options to take care of connectivity. One strategy being thought-about is to revive the circuits of SEA-ME-WE 5 utilizing SEA-ME-WE 4, Bangladesh’s first submarine cable put in in Cox’s Bazar. This cable, established in 2006, at present provides round 850 Gbps of bandwidth and has just lately been upgraded to a capability of three,800 Gbps.

Furthermore, the BSCPLC has plans to boost Bangladesh’s connectivity additional with the introduction of a 3rd undersea cable, SEA-ME-WE 6, anticipated to offer 13,200 Gbps by 2025.

Md Emdadul Hoque, president of the Web Service Suppliers Affiliation of Bangladesh (ISPAB), expressed issues over the affect of the submarine cable’s breakdown on web companies. Mr. Hoque said that the disruption is more likely to severely have an effect on web connectivity for nearly per week, impacting companies, schooling, and day by day on-line actions.

Submarine cables play a pivotal function in international web infrastructure, facilitating high-capacity information switch between continents. They’re important for supporting international communication, on-line companies, and worldwide connectivity which can be elementary to trendy digital operations.

Bangladesh’s dependence on submarine cables for its web entry highlights the important function these infrastructures play within the nation’s connectivity. The current disruption of the SEA-ME-WE 5 cable emphasizes the vulnerabilities that include such methods. This incident underscores the crucial for sustaining and upgrading these cables and creating sturdy contingency plans. Guaranteeing uninterrupted web companies is essential for the nation’s economic system, schooling, and day by day life, making resilience and diversification of web connectivity sources important for Bangladesh’s digital future.

The current cable breakdown underscores the urgent requirement for Bangladesh to diversify its web connectivity sources and embrace various applied sciences. Strengthening resilience with a number of cable methods, satellite tv for pc hyperlinks, and terrestrial networks is pivotal to decreasing the affect of future disruptions. Such measures are important for guaranteeing uninterrupted web entry for the nation’s increasing inhabitants, safeguarding towards potential challenges and supporting continued digital improvement.

As work progresses to restore the SEA-ME-WE 5 cable and maintain web entry by various strategies, this incident highlights the essential want for Bangladesh to construct a resilient and diversified web infrastructure. With the nation’s digital panorama quickly rising, prioritizing investments in robust and backup connectivity options turns into important. These steps will not be solely essential for bolstering the digital economic system but in addition for adapting to the altering calls for of the inhabitants. Guaranteeing a dependable and different web community is vital to Bangladesh’s continued digital development and success.