India

Out of all countries worldwide, India shuts down its internet most frequently: Forbes report

Number of internet shutdowns by country. Pic credits: STATISTA

A report by Forbes has revealed that India shuts down its internet more frequently, as compared to other nations, which include Pakistan, Iraq, Syria and even Iran.

“According to Access Now data reported by Vice News, India experienced 154 shutdowns between January 2016 and May 2018. That’s a huge distance ahead of second-placed Pakistan’s 19 shutdown’s and 8 in both Iraq and Syria,” the report stated.

“In many countries, internet shutdowns are preemptive or reactive measures to mass or potential public unrest, with Turkey’s 2016 failed military coup an obvious recent example. This is also true to some extent in India where internet access is cut off due to political turmoil, protests or military operations,” the report, done by Niall McCarthy, a data journalist says.

“In India, the sheer volume of shutdowns, coupled with their length, are getting expensive – very expensive. According to a report by The Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER), 16,315 hours of intentional internet downtime between 2012 and 2017 cost the Indian economy a whopping $3.04 billion,” the report further adds.

This report comes at a time when internet services at, regular points of time, due to clashes between militants and armed forces, are snapped, affecting normal life in the valley and cutting the state off from the rest of the world.

 

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