When Internet will be Restored in Pakistan – PTA Announced

When internet services will be restored in Pakistan? This is the question that everyone is asking for. Internet users in Pakistan are facing prolonged disruptions as the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) struggles to fully restore services. Despite the PTA’s deadline for resolving these issues having passed, internet speeds remain slow across the country. As Pakistan enters its 21st day of sluggish internet service, officials indicate that a complete restoration will require more time and effort.

The PTA has attributed these slow internet speeds primarily to faults in two of the country’s seven submarine cables, namely the AAE-1 and SMW4 cables. These cables play a critical role in providing the country with international internet connectivity. The PTA expects to complete the re-routing of the AAE-1 cable within a day or two, which might lead to some improvement in internet services. However, the repair of the SMW4 cable, which is more complex, will take several more weeks.

When Internet will be Restored in Pakistan – PTA Announced

Until technicians fully repair both submarine cables, users across Pakistan will continue to face slow internet speeds and intermittent connectivity issues. These disruptions have had a significant impact on the overall Internet experience, affecting businesses, educational institutions, and personal communications. The delays have also sparked frustration among users who rely heavily on stable internet connectivity for their daily activities.

During a meeting of the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Information Technology, National Assembly members questioned PTA Chairman Retired Major General Hafeezur Rehman about the widespread complaints regarding internet slowdowns. In response, Rehman outlined four primary issues contributing to the current situation.

Firstly, he highlighted that the SMW4 submarine cable, which has been non-operational for about a month, is a major cause of the reduced internet capacity. The cutting of this cable has diminished Pakistan’s inland internet capacity by approximately 1.5 terabits per second, severely impacting the quality of service.

See Also: Internet Outage Crisis in Pakistan: Telecom Operators Seek PM’s Intervention

Secondly, the PTA reported a 70% decline in internet services due to a significant misconfiguration in the core network of a major internet service provider (ISP). This error led to a substantial reduction in internet performance, prompting the PTA to take stern action. The ISP dismissed three senior technical managers as a result of this failure.

Thirdly, they observed a significant degradation of internet traffic, amounting to about 1.5 terabits per second, entering Pakistan on August 15. The decline coincided with India’s National Day, and authorities suspect a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack caused it. The PTA suggested that Indian state actors might have carried out the disruption, highlighting a history of similar incidents on national days like August 14.

Lastly, the increased use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) during this period has also contributed to slower internet speeds. The encryption, tunnelling, and extended routing of data packets associated with VPN usage have led to slower response times, further affecting users’ internet experiences.

These combined factors underscore the challenges the PTA faces in fully restoring internet services. Until the PTA resolved the issues, internet users in Pakistan will need to endure the slow and unreliable connectivity that has become the norm in recent weeks.

Check Also: National Assembly IT Committee Questions PTA Over Internet Disruptions & Social Media Blockades