26 September 2016, 14:16 GMT
New Delhi (Sputnik) — India has kick-started plans to provide fast and reliable telecom connection between the island chain of Andaman & Nicobar Islands and the mainland. The state-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited has invited global bids for improving connectivity to this strategically important location in the Indian Ocean region.
The government has given its approval to a direct communication link through a dedicated submarine Optical Fiber Cable between India’s mainland (Chennai) and six islands of Abdaman & Nicobar Islands at a cost of $ 165 million. Sources told Sputnik that the companies will be selected by January 2017.
Besides being a tourist haven, Andaman & Nicobar Islands are very close to Malacca Straits, a narrow but very busy shipping thoroughfare. India has vastly upgraded its military base with the latest weaponry including Russian Sukhoi-30 MKI combat jets.
