Islamabad — Internet services across Pakistan have been fully restored following the completion of repair work on a faulty repeater in one of the country’s main submarine cable systems, the Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) confirmed on Wednesday.
Users had reported sluggish speeds and intermittent connectivity on Tuesday, particularly in upper Punjab and Islamabad, amid both technical disruptions and ongoing law and order challenges in certain areas.
PTCL explained that maintenance work began at 11 a.m. (Pakistan Standard Time) on Tuesday as part of a scheduled repair operation by an international cable consortium. The work focused on fixing a malfunctioning repeater under the sea, temporarily affecting international internet traffic.
The telecom operator had earlier warned customers of potential slowdowns during the 18-hour maintenance window, emphasizing that the operation was essential to ensure long-term network stability.
“We regret the inconvenience and appreciate our customers’ patience during this essential maintenance window,” PTCL said in a statement.
PTCL manages three of Pakistan’s six submarine cable systems, which collectively handle the bulk of the country’s global internet connectivity. The remaining systems are operated by Trans World Associates (Pvt.) Ltd and Cyber Internet Services under the PEACE cable network.
These six undersea cables collectively provide around 13 terabits per second (Tbps) of capacity, while Pakistan’s current internet usage ranges between 7 and 8 Tbps, ensuring redundancy and resilience in national connectivity.
