Bharti Airtel is set to take on Reliance’s Flag and Tata Communications or TCOM (formerly VSNL) in the undersea cable business to carry voice and data between different countries. The company is lining up plans to offer connectivity to countries across South-East Asia and West Asia. Bharti is part of four different consortiums that are building undersea links across the world and these cables are set to become operational by later this year, enabling it to target business opportunities across many countries in Asia and Africa. The company has invested over Rs 1,500 crore in the last two years in existing and upcoming cable routes. Bharti has reached a deal with Australia Japan Cable (AJC) to interconnect their current and future networks at the pacific Island of Guam. The deal will enable Bharti to carry voice and data for telcos in Singapore, the USA West Coast and Australia. As per the deal, Bharti will link its assets on the upcoming Asia-America Gateway (AAG) cable with AJC, which connects Australia to Guam and Japan. The AAG, being built by a 17-member consortium, is the first submarine cable system linking South-East Asia directly to the US, and when operational, it will connect 10 locations in eight Asian countries and the US West Coast. crackcrack