Disconnected

"Should you find yourself in

a chronically leaking boat,

energy devoted to changing

vessels is likely to be more

productive than the energy

devoted to patching leaks"

— Warren Buffett

Last week, the Government of Assam ordered the discontinuance of Internet services across the state for one day. A week before that, the 3.5-crore residents in the North-Eastern state went through a similar experience. And come the end of the week that begins tomorrow, the same people may just bear the brunt of another miserable and disconnected day, yet again. Why? Well, only and primarily because the State is holding examinations for Government jobs and wants to avoid the leaking of question papers and the possibility of candidates getting answers surreptitiously using their mobile phones and other connected devices. The said exams are being held over three phases (days) and hence the clampdown on Internet services for these three days. Whoa, indeed.

Talk about wielding a sledgehammer to drive a small nail into a tiny sliver of wood. That is exactly what Sir Warren Buffet implied in his quote with which we began—that it is better to use the right tools for the job at hand (and the right approach for any given task) than to make gargantuan attempts that are as flippant as they are overbearing, bound to end in abject failure and complete dismay. Moving back to Assam, while service providers were asked to shut down Net services 10 am to 12 pm and from 2 pm to 4 pm on exam days, some service providers suspended services from early morning, affecting millions of users across the state, leading to loss of livelihoods, lack of access to critical services, and even near-loss of lives.

To cite one example, a little boy, all of 14 years of age, was admitted to a Guwahati hospital after suffering a severe asthma attack. With his tiny and short life being sustained by a ventilator inside the hospital's Intensive Care Unit (ICU), doctors advised the immediate family to arrange for an injection that may save the boy's life, or there was no hope. As chemists and medical shops in Guwahati did not have the said drug, the petrified and hapless reached out to vendors in Kolkata as a last resort. Kolkata chemists asked for a picture of the required injection to service their desperate requirement. But how would they do so, as there was no Internet available? Hours later, the family found a wired, Wi-Fi connection that was working and did the needful. The injection has since been dispatched; as for the boy's survival, the medical jury is still out on that one. Just imagine the despair of the family in those few hours of waiting for connectivity.

Disruption of lives

Having enumerated a touching factual case above, let's cross over to fiction, albeit one that must have played out thousands of times in Assam in these two disconnected days gone by. Someone wants to get to the airport or railway station or just visit friends (let's not even talk medical emergencies again)—what does he/she do? Well, they just pick up their mobile phones, browse for a bit and punch in for an Ola, Uber or any other cab service that shall soon whisk them away. Normally, yes, but not when Internet services are down for the smooth conduct of what is a common examination, certainly not when Ola or Uber servers cannot be contacted. That's one side of the story; on the other side are the Ola and Uber drivers themselves, who lost their livelihood for two days in August thanks to exams.

The analogy above can be extended to any and many other sectors. Try food delivery apps and again users on both sides—those who were hungry and their delivery boys—have already paid the price. Estimates put the number of delivery boys from just Swiggy and Zomato at many, many thousands in Assam alone; the corollary is that these thousands lost their earnings of two days, their spirited contribution to the unprejudiced conduct of State Government examinations. On a lighter vein, what of the many other thousands who could not eat that day and stayed hungry, or attempted their hand at self-catering and cooked up the proverbial culinary storm?

Luckily, more established businesses largely ploughed their path ahead unaffected through these Internet disruptions, as they have access to wired Internet connections and Wi-Fi, both in their office spaces and at home. Paradoxically, the COVID-19 pandemic-driven Work-from-Home culture has helped tremendously, transforming the very face of connectivity for those not on the move. When mobile Internet goes down though, those on the move are completely shorn of their dependence and/or indulgence on connectivity, be it work-related stuff or the despair they face at not being able to share minute-by-minute highlights of their shimmering lives on Social Media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and what have you.

Back for a bit to Sir Warren (Buffett) and a direct interpretation of his words with direct emphasis on the Assam Net shutdowns. How difficult would it have been to police the few hundred thousand who are appearing for the state exams, compared to the inconvenience and misery meted out to crores of normal, everyday citizens, sometimes critically so? After all, in these times of heightened sensitivities and sensibilities, don't those policing India's airports sift through far more passengers, their baggage, bodies and other paraphernalia to ensure both safety and stem the possibility of any horrific headlines the next day?

Low-hanging fruit

In light of the above, decisions such as the one to shut down Internet connectivity appear to be yet another classic instance of those in authority grabbing at low-hanging fruit and biting into the same to enjoy the nectar and juices, while those watering and grooming those fruit-bearing trees are left holding the residue pulp and spat-out pips as a reward for their hope and faith in a future more solid. I have to point out that my illustration of Assam to begin this story was only because it is the latest to resort to this trend; across our country many hundred Internet shutdowns have happened across tens of states over the last few years. Shutting down the Internet as an administrative or law-and-order measure has become common now for all political parties and governments. There is no official data on the number of shutdowns, but estimates by research organisations show that their frequency is increasing year on year.

A research paper by digital rights activist group Access Now received widespread media coverage worldwide in April this year, as it gave out some startling numbers and statistics. "India imposed Internet shutdowns 106 times in 2021, ahead of all other countries for the fourth consecutive year," the Access Now report said. Titled 'The Return of Digital Authoritarianism: Internet Shutdowns', it added: "With a gradual return to normalcy following the Covid-19 pandemic, (there was) a resurgence of Internet shutdowns in 2021." A total of 182 Internet crackdowns were reported globally in 2021. Out of 106 shutdowns in India, 85 were reported in Jammu and Kashmir.

India was one of 18 countries that blocked mobile Internet during protests, the report said. The number of countries that shut down the Internet in 2021 has increased to 34 from 29 in 2020. "Authorities in many countries imposed shutdowns in transparent efforts to silence critics and suppress dissent. Others wielded shutdowns to control the flow of information during elections and active conflict and war, including coups," the report added. Tellingly, after India, Myanmar is ranked second for blocking the Internet (15 times in 2021), followed by Iran and Sudan (five incidents each). "An internet shutdown is not a solution; it is a disproportionate, collective punishment that violates human rights and is unacceptable in a 21st-century society. Any democracy can only be preserved and strengthened with a commitment to facilitating access to the Internet for all," an official at Access Group said.

Times for a pause

I mean a pause in our way of thinking, not that in Internet services! Here are some more numbers from another recent research report to chew on before we talk of a balanced approach to resolve the issue at hand and face future onslaughts of any kind. There have been 665 Internet shutdowns in India to date, since Year 2012. This figure is part of a report by the Software Freedom Law Center (SFLC), a legal services organisation working in this field in the country, which also defines a 'shutdown' as a total ban on mobile (3G, 4G/LTE), or fixed-line (dial-up, wired/wireless broadband) Internet, both or either of which may be shut down. As already mentioned, India is the leading country (by number) for Internet disruption incidents. This year alone, 59 shutdowns have already been enforced, according to SFLC.

A state-wise break-up makes up for both an interesting read and a keener understanding as to how various entities are reacting to any unseen developments or upcoming instances in their geographies. Jammu and Kashmir has had 411 shutdowns since Year 2012, the longest one of which went on for 552 days after the abrogation of the special status of the erstwhile state. Rajasthan has had its share too, with 88 shutdowns over the last 10 years, its reasons ranging from protests by Gujjars to preventing cheating in the Rajasthan Eligibility Examination for Teachers (clearly then, India's leaders do not trust examinees or even their own administration's prowess in strictly enforcing the examination rules!).

After their version of events, many state Governments say misinformation and rumours can lead to deterioration in law and order in certain pockets, and thus curbing the flow of information helps maintain peace among communities in times of crisis. Others disagree, countering that in the absence of information sources such as social media and other news channels, gossip and rumours can end up spreading like wildfire, with no one present to contain it quickly. And let's not even forget about essential financial services such as those related to payments, banking and educational access, which all get cut in an instant and result in disruptions at multiple levels and lead to economic losses, which we can well do without.

Only public emergencies...

Worldwide, it is mostly in the event of dire public emergency that evolved Governments have resorted to Internet shutdowns and blackouts, to prevent the fallout of any on-ground crises or the spread of misinformation or rumours using the Internet. But there are exceptions, and the numbers are rising. To name but a few, we can start with Caracas and Khartoum, where protesters regularly leverage the Internet to organize online and proclaim their rights. In the past year, Governments in Bangladesh, Pakistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Sudan, Myanmar and Zimbabwe shut down Internet connectivity in all or some parts of their countries, perhaps hoping that doing so would shut off their problems. It does not always and sometimes, it only exacerbates the dilemma at hand.

India is turning out to be different, claim some politicos, and this debate is only getting more raucous. Earlier this year in February, Parliament was asked whether the Government maintains records for shutdowns or has plans to do so, and if not, what protocol is to be followed in specific cases. The authorities replied that 'The Review Committee' in states is mandated to decide on Internet shutdowns, as per rules. These rules, in turn, say that temporary suspensions can be ordered "due to public emergency or public safety", and senior bureaucrats from the Home Ministry at the central and state levels have been given the power to order shutdowns. Before these rules came into force in 2017, Internet shutdowns were ordered under Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CPC), which gave District Magistrates these powers during "dangerous situations".

This tweaking of rules has triggered a rowdy and unruly debate, one where explanations are being demanded on what "dangerous" and "emergency" situations really imply. Late last year, Parliament's Standing Committee on Communications and Information Technology said: "Governments have resorted to telecom/Internet shutdown on grounds not so pressing and have been regularly using this as a tool for routine policing and even administrative purposes, such as preventing cheating in exams and defusing local crime, which do not amount to large-scale public safety concerns and certainly do not amount to a 'public emergency'." And the tirade rages on, even as more and more buttons are being increasingly flicked, leaving parts of the country in Internet darkness. Disconnected.

What's the long-term answer and the sensible end-game? As with many issues confronting our tall nation at this time, the only path forward is one of dialogue, concurrence after that dialogue, and cohesiveness on implementation of set policy after that concurrence. Anything more or less will only lead to more debate, further political, religious and economic tumult, and even greater darkness. To end as I began, DISCONNECTED.

The writer is a veteran journalist and communications specialist. He can be reached on narayanrajeev2006@gmail.com. Views expressed are personal