Telcos, Big Tech call for ease of business in laying subsea cable infra

Telecom operators laying submarine fibre cables in India have urged the government to ease bureaucratic hurdles and allow waivers for this nascent domestic sector that has attracted the likes of Meta Platforms Inc. and Google.

- Jatin Grover

Telcos have demanded a waiver of licence fee on cable landing station revenue, as well as a single-window clearance for various permits, such as for repair and maintenance infrastructure.

"It takes six months to get approval for getting a repair ship to India and is a very long process," Rahul Vatts, chief regulatory officer at Bharti Airtel Ltd, said at the first international conference on subsea cable systems in India.

Undersea cables are crucial for global connectivity and serve as the backbone of the internet and global communications. India is currently dependent on marine service providers from Singapore and Dubai for any repairs to subsea cables along its coastline.