India's new internet gateway via Cox’s Bazar to open late January, says minister

By end-January, internet connectivity in India’s north-eastern states will be as good as in the country’s metro cities, thanks to an internet gateway through Bangladesh, a senior official of state-owned telecom company Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) has said.

Agartala Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 13 Jan 2016, 04:32 PM
Updated : 13 Jan 2016, 04:32 PM

Almost 99 percent work in setting up the international internet gateway was over, said BSNL CGM (NE Circle) KK Saxena at a press briefing in Tripura state capital Agartala on Wednesday.
 
He was hopeful of being able to inaugurate the gateway, the foundation of which had been laid by India’s telecom minister Ravishankar Prashad, by this month.
 
“Once this facility is inaugurated through Bangladesh the entire internet service - be it landline, lease line or mobile network—which at present goes via Guwahati and Kolkata will go through Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh. This will enable us to give stable connectivity,” he said.
 
The state that stands to benefit the most is Tripura for its proximity to the Cox’s Bazar landing station in Bangladesh.
 
The project agreement had been signed between Bangladesh Submarine Cable Company and India’s BSNL during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the neighbouring country last year.
 
With this, India will be able to lease 10 Gbps (Gigabits per second) capacity from Bangladesh. This can later be increased up to 40 Gbps.
 
The international gateway for broadband connectivity will be installed in Agartala for extending internet bandwidth in the north-eastern region via the Cox’s Bazar landing station.
 
This project will resolve internet connectivity issue to a great extent for India’s north-eastern states, which at present have their gateway in Chennai or Mumbai.
 
The connectivity of Tripura, Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh are often disrupted.
 
The project is expected to lead to faster and improved services in the region, the official said.