Digital Connectivity

Airtel expands network capacity with Blue-Raman submarine cable: What is it

Airtel Business and Italy-based Sparkle have partnered to increase data capacity on the Blue-Raman undersea cable linking India and Italy. Blue-Raman is an intercontinental communications cable system

Airtel Business inks pact with Sparkle to enhance connectivity with Europe

Airtel Business, the B2B arm of telecom major Bharti Airtel, has inked a pact with Italy-based global operator Sparkle to enhance connectivity between Asia and Europe. As part of the partnership, Airtel will take capacity from Sparkle on the Blue-Raman Submarine Cable Systems, which will connect India to Italy. Under Sparkle's Blue-Raman cable system, Blue is deployed across Italy, France, Greece and Israel, while Raman connects Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Djibouti, Oman and India. "With this additional capacity, Airtel will further diversify its global network across multiple international submarine cable systems to serve the growing demand for data services in India and neighbouring countries," a company statement said. The partnership will also work on the development of new business opportunities and projects in the Indian sub-continent, leveraging Airtel and Sparkle's respective cable infrastructures, the statement said. Airtel Business Global Business CEO Vani Venkatesh said the .

Civil aviation ministry gets Rs 2,357 cr budgetary allocation for 2024-25

The budgetary allocation for the civil aviation ministry has been reduced to Rs 2,357.14 crore for the current fiscal ending next March, with regional air connectivity scheme set to get Rs 502 crore during the same period. In the revised budgetary allocation for 2023-24, the amount for the ministry was at Rs 2,922.12 crore. As per documents of the Union Budget 2024-25 that was presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Parliament on Tuesday, the ministry will get an allocation of Rs 2,357.14 crore. The money set aside for the regional air connectivity scheme has been cut to Rs 502 crore from Rs 850 crore in the revised budgetary allocation for 2023-24. The amount is for revival of 22 airports as well as commencement of 124 RCS routes and Viability Gap Funding for North East Connectivity. To improve connectivity in the northeast region, a new scheme has also been formulated for providing air connectivity and aviation infrastructure, as per a document. However, the Product

Impact of Digital Competition Bill on India's homegrown startup ecosystem

The Draft Digital Competition Bill is part of a more significant endeavour by the government to address the above competition concerns in the digital and technology ecosystem

Navigating the export maze for MSMEs

Digitisation holds immense potential to revolutionise MSME exports. Digital technologies can streamline exports, reduce costs, expand reach, and enhance operational efficiency

Centre lays out guidelines for 4G tower installation in protected areas

The proposal also requires detailed plans encompassing location, logistics, renewable energy usage, and the Chief Wildlife Warden's assessment of future impacts on wildlife management

Elon Musk announces launch of 'Starlink Direct-to-Phone' satellites

Starlink Direct-to-Phone satellites will provide mobile phone access anywhere on Earth and also a solution for areas without cellular coverage

Quite a fast charge: Indian smartphone users world's top data consumers

The research is based on Ericsson's Mobility Report for 2023, which was released globally on Thursday

Vulnerabilities in India's digital infra spur rise in cyberattacks: Experts

SaaS and conglomerate companies experienced ten times more attacks than the preceding quarter, according to the study

India-made MOSIP: An identity tool for the world's development needs

MOSIP is helping developing nations to build inclusive and targeted programmes for their citizens

Interoperability of DPIs likely to be 'long-term goal' for G20 summit

Developed nations believe DPIs may be a threat to private payment networks

Cabinet approves Rs 1.39 trn for connecting 640,000 villages with broadband

The Union Cabinet has approved a last-mile broadband connectivity plan for 6.4 lakh villages across the country under the BharatNet project with an outlay of Rs 1.39 lakh crore, according to sources. Around 1.94 lakh villages have been connected under the BharatNet project at present, and the balance is likely to be connected in two and a half years, they added. "The Cabinet in its meeting, held on Friday evening, has approved Rs 1,39,579 crore for providing last mile optical fibre-based connectivity to homes in all villages of the country," one of the sources said. The last-mile connectivity will be provided by Bharat Broadband Network Limited (BBNL), an arm of state-owned BSNL, in partnership with village level entrepreneur (VLE). "The model to take fibre-to-the-home, with the help of a local entrepreneur, was finalised after the successful completion of a pilot project. The pilot project was initially carried out to connect villages in four districts and then expanded to 60,000

70% of startups say tech adoption propels hypergrowth: SAP-Zinnov Study

About 37% of the startups plan to increase their spending on enterprise applications by more than 15% in 2023

Embracing a digital mindset

There are three key reasons why incumbents find it immensely challenging to sustain digital transformation agendas

All 1,284 registered Kerala tribal hamlets to be digitally connected soon

At a meeting with the top BSNL officials on Wednesday, the state Minister for SC/ST, K.Radhakrishnan assured to provide appropriate land for the purpose

India can play key role in connectivity, economic cooperation: CICA

India can play a major role in taking forward the agenda of the 28-nation grouping, CICA, in boosting "Asian spirit" and expand cooperation in areas such as connectivity and economic cooperation, a top official of the bloc said on Tuesday. Secretary General of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) Ambassador Kairat Sarybay also said the grouping is focusing on enhancing Asia's role in addressing various global challenges. India, China, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan and South Korea are among the key members of the grouping. The CICA secretary general is currently on a visit to India. "The CICA is focusing on boosting cooperation in Asia in the areas of connectivity, food security and regional financial cooperation," he said during a media interaction. Replying to a question on the lingering border row between India and China, Sarybay said bilateral issues are not allow

SCO members unanimously adopt proposal on Digital Public Infra: Vaishnaw

Inter-governmental body Shanghai Cooperation Organization members, which includes China and Pakistan, have unanimously adopted India's proposal for developing Digital Public Infrastructure, Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Saturday. India has developed Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) like unified payment interface, Aadhaar etc to make services available to people in a convenient manner. "The Digital Ministers of SCO member states met today and unanimously adopted India's proposal for developing Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) as the right way for deploying digital technology among member states," Vaishnaw said. The SCO comprises eight Member States (China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan), four Observer States interested in acceding to full membership (Afghanistan, Belarus, Iran, and Mongolia) and six 'Dialogue Partners' (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Cambodia, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Turkey). Vaishnaw said DPI is very important from th

Developing nations need to provide digital solutions for citizens: FM

Addressing G7 meet in Japan, Sitharaman highlighted that access to digital connectivity has empowered people and there is a need to discuss ways to measure empowerment going beyond GDP indicators

Pakistan among world's worst performers in internet access: Report

Pakistan in 2022 remained among the world's worst performers in terms of internet access and digital governance, according to a report released on Monday. Titled "Pakistan's Internet Landscape 2022", the report was released by Bytes For All -- a human rights and advocacy organisation -- which explores in detail the relationship between human rights and information and communication technologies in Pakistan last year. In terms of internet access and overall governance, Pakistan made some gains, but in the context of the world, the country remains among the worst performers, even within just Asia, according to the report. It highlights that despite an increase in internet penetration, approximately 15 per cent of the population still lacked access to the internet and mobile or telecom services. Add to this a lack of inclusivity and digital literacy, one of the biggest global gender gaps in access and a struggle to stay online due to load-shedding and blackouts brought on by an energy

Heading in right direction by maximising use of digital platforms: Khattar

The Haryana government is heading in the right direction of public service through maximising the use of digital platforms, Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said on Saturday. Khattar was in Faridabad where he distributed tablets to kanungos and patwaris working in the Revenue department. Speaking at the event, he lauded the growth of digital services as a commendable move towards public service. These tablets will enable the kanungos and patwaris in Faridabad to provide better services, including e-Girdawari (survey), caste verification under the Parivar Pehchan Patra (Family ID scheme) and income verification, among others, Khattar added. Distributing the tablets to 41 kanungos and patwaris in the district, the chief minister motivated them to carry out their duties effectively in the implementation of government services. Union Minister of State for Power and Heavy Industries Krishan Pal Gurjar, Haryana Transport Minister Mool Chand Sharma and Faridabad MLA Narender Gupta were