Tarun Karthick
Sri Vijaya Puram, 13 October 2025
The CANI Submarine Optical Fibre Cable, which serves as the digital lifeline of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, developed a snag in the Car Nicobar–Kamorta segment on 20th September 2025, disrupting communication links to Nancowry and Great Nicobar. Since the fault occurred, both regions have been dependent on satellite connectivity to meet their communication needs, which has proved to be slow, unstable, and far from ideal for daily use.
When the outage first struck, Great Nicobar experienced a complete communication blackout. For several days, residents were entirely cut off from the rest of the world. Over time, limited connectivity was restored through BSNL’s satellite link, but services remain poor with frequent call drops and poor voice clarity. Airtel, after much logistical effort, managed to transport and install a V-SAT terminal at Campbell Bay last week, making a basic 2G network operational and giving some relief to mobile users.
Nancowry was quicker to respond, managing a smoother switch to satellite communication soon after the outage began, thus minimising the initial impact. However, the overall situation remains grim in both sub-divisions. The majority of residents still have no access to the internet, and the prolonged disruption has had a severe impact on businesses, especially in Great Nicobar, where digital payments had become routine. The sudden reversion to cash transactions has slowed economic activity, with many traders reporting a noticeable decline in sales.
The outage has also disconnected people from the steady stream of news and information that had become an integral part of daily life through online platforms. Residents are unable to stay updated with local or national developments, and even government departments are facing challenges in functioning smoothly. Efforts are being made to reduce inconvenience, but the disruption has made it evident that modern life in the islands is deeply dependent on stable digital connectivity.
The situation clearly demonstrates the need for a secondary submarine cable to provide redundancy and ensure uninterrupted communication. Earlier, there were reports of a proposed submarine cable between Digha in West Bengal and Diglipur in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to strengthen digital infrastructure.
During the 7th Island Development Agency (IDA) meeting held in January 2025 under the chairmanship of the Union Home Minister Amit Shah, digital connectivity was among the key agenda items. The proposal for submarine optical fibre connectivity between Diglipur and Puri in Odisha, to be implemented in phases with priority completion of the Sri Vijaya Puram to Shaheed Dweep segment, was discussed in that meeting. The current situation only reinforces how urgently such plans must be executed to make the islands’ communication system more resilient.
The outage in the Car Nicobar–Kamorta segment has made it clear that having a backup cable system is no longer optional but a matter of necessity. If a similar snag were ever to occur in the main segment of the CANI cable connecting Chennai and Sri Vijaya Puram, the entire island chain could face a complete communication blackout, crippling government functioning, emergency response, and public life across the territory.
It is also essential to ensure redundancy within the inter-island segments of the CANI system itself so that a fault in one segment does not isolate entire regions. The system should be designed with internal looping or alternate routing, so communication remains unaffected even in case of damage to one part of the network. Additionally, backup connectivity to the southern islands through one of the many international submarine cables passing through the Andaman Sea should be explored.
The ongoing disruption has been a wake-up call about how vulnerable the islands remain in terms of digital infrastructure. For the residents of Nancowry and Great Nicobar, this outage has affected much more than phone or internet access—it has disrupted livelihoods, communication, business, and the essential flow of information. Strengthening digital connectivity with a secondary submarine cable and a robust redundancy plan is no longer just a technical requirement but an urgent priority for the future of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
