Pakistan’s internet users are facing a compounding connectivity crisis, with the return of evening loadshedding coinciding with ongoing submarine cable maintenance to create what users and digital workers are describing as the worst sustained period of internet disruption in recent months. Disruptions are particularly pronounced during evening hours when loadshedding begins across many areas, affecting users on all major mobile networks including Zong and Jazz, with freelancers, remote workers, and online businesses reporting that unstable connections are disrupting meetings, uploads, client communication, and other routine work that depends on reliable internet access.
The technical explanation lies in how telecom sites manage power failures. Network towers rely on backup battery systems during outages, but those batteries require three to four hours of continuous electricity to fully recharge. With loadshedding returning before that recharge cycle can be completed, network stability is being compromised across several areas, creating a situation where towers are running on partially depleted backup power when the next outage begins. This overlapping cycle of incomplete recovery is compressing the window within which normal service levels can be restored, creating a persistent degradation rather than the sharp but recoverable dips that shorter or less frequent outages typically produce.
The disruptions are further compounded by ongoing submarine cable maintenance, with internet services expected to remain affected due to repair work being carried out on a key cable by an international consortium, with a Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited spokesperson confirming the repairs and cautioning that internet speeds could slow during evening hours. Pakistan’s international connectivity depends on a limited number of submarine cable routes, meaning that any maintenance or fault on those cables shifts bandwidth pressure onto remaining infrastructure, with the effect most acutely felt during peak evening usage hours when streaming, social media, remote work, and gaming collectively push traffic to its daily maximum.
The situation has exposed the deep structural link between reliable electricity supply and functional digital infrastructure, with students missing online classes, healthcare consultations facing delays, and small businesses losing sales as mobile and broadband services become intermittently unusable. In rural and semi-urban areas where alternative communication options are limited, the impact is even more acute, raising questions about the resilience of Pakistan’s digital infrastructure at a moment when the country is simultaneously pursuing ambitious fifth generation rollout plans and positioning itself as a growing hub for technology exports and digital services.
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