Starlink is a threat

Vinash

Vinash

Vinaash Kaale, Vipreet Buddhi
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With the recent talk about Starlink etc India needs to be extremely careful.

Many examples of rogue elements using it already.


The Andaman and Nicobar Police on Thursday recovered sophisticated satellite communication equipment and saved navigation coordinates from a Myanmarese vessel caught earlier this week with what officials called the largest-ever drug haul in the region - approximately 6,000kg of methamphetamine worth over ₹36,000 crore.

The boat, intercepted in a joint operation by the Crime and Economic Offence Police Station (C&EO) and the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) on Monday, had Starlink equipment and GPS waypoints saved for Rangat and Neil island. Starlink, operated by Elon Musk’s SpaceX, provides high-speed satellite internet access even in remote maritime locations, making it potentially valuable for coordinating illegal operations far from conventional communication networks.

Director general of police HGS Dhaiwal said police traced the location of the main accused, Zay Yar Soe, to Tachileik near the borders of Laos, Myanmar and Thailand – a region notorious as the golden triangle of drugs. “We’ve also recovered his boarding passes of September 28 and October 7, when he travelled from Yangoon to Tachileik,” he said.

The investigation has revealed an intricately planned operation spanning multiple countries. During custodial interrogation, Soe detailed his movements across Southeast Asia. “On September 30, they came back to Yangoon and spent about a week there for making administrative arrangements. On October 7, he travelled by air to Kwathang town, which is on the Myanmar-Thailand border, to decide the final delivery point with the buyer,” Dhaiwal said.

In mid-October, Soe travelled from Kwathang to Myeik, where he purchased and registered a boat with a new engine and obtained fishing permits - likely an attempt to disguise the vessel as a legitimate fishing trawler. He then sailed to Yangoon, arriving November 7. The vessel departed Yangoon for Kwathang on November 20 after loading cargo.

The breakthrough came when an ICG Dornier aircraft on routine patrol spotted suspicious movement near Barren Island, approximately 150km from Port Blair. The vessel was intercepted by ICG ship Aruna Asaf Ali on November 23 and apprehended the next day.

“The drifting may have been intentional. The same has to be checked via technical analysis of the boat. An envelope containing 5,000 kyats and coordinates written on it has also been recovered. The coordinates are of an area near Sumatra, Indonesia, south of the delivery point,” Dhaiwal said.

Investigators found crucial evidence on Soe’s mobile phone - photos and a video showing someone loading packets into gunny bags at 9pm on November 23, hours after the initial ICG sighting. “All the gunny bags have 50 small packets except one which has 49. Most likely, it may have been consumed by them,” the DGP said.

A senior ICG officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, emphasised that the operation resulted from enhanced surveillance and coordination between agencies. “In recent times, the Andaman and Nicobar Police and ICG have been conducting joint operations following increased sightings of Rohingya boats and Myanmarese poaching vessels. These measures culminated in the biggest one-time seizure of methamphetamine, worth over ₹36,000 crore in retail market,” he said.

The six Myanmarese crew members were detained for questioning. Forensic Science Laboratory teams tested samples from 10 of the 222 gunny bags, confirming the substance as methamphetamine. The total haul weighed approximately 6,016kg.

The seizure highlights the growing sophistication of drug trafficking operations in the region, with smugglers now employing advanced technology like Starlink for coordination. The Andaman Sea route has become increasingly crucial for drug trafficking operations due to its strategic location between the golden triangle and major drug markets.

The region has seen consistent anti-trafficking operations in recent years. In the past five years, Andaman and Nicobar Police have seized about 1,100kg of narcotics and arrested 640 people. Additionally, 423 foreign poachers were arrested with 5,187kg of marine wealth including sea cucumber and turbo shells.
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Suryavanshi said:
Cross posting
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Our top politicians and babus are utterly compromised.

Everything I've researched over the past few days suggests that India will let Starlink in.
 
Vinash said:
Our top politicians and babus are utterly compromised.

Everything I've researched over the past few days suggests that India will let Starlink in.
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I don't understand why elon is keen on getting star link in India. No one will pay for such absurdly expensive service and the miscreants aren't numerous enough to keep the cash flowing.
 
Suryavanshi said:
I don't understand why elon is keen on getting star link in India. No one will pay for such absurdly expensive service and the miscreants aren't numerous enough to keep the cash flowing.
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Starlink is available in Chad which has a per capita GDP of 600$ i.e 1/5th of India.


View: https://x.com/aravind/status/1856155789142217103

It's a deep state tool to control conflicts, support 1 side and blackmail a country's Gov to follow orders or else.
 
Vinash said:
Our top politicians and babus are utterly compromised.

Everything I've researched over the past few days suggests that India will let Starlink in.
Click to expand...
Oneweb is yet to launch in India - despite the deep political connections of Sunil Mittal. And this is an entity that is financially backed by an Indian telco. What chances does a foreign entity stand, given an uber protectionist and hypersensitive GoI?

From Tesla to Solar City - Elmo's companies have been historically kept out of Indian market by the GoI. What makes Starlink different?
 
crazywithmath said:
Oneweb is yet to launch in India - despite the deep political connections of Sunil Mittal. And this is an entity that is financially backed by an Indian telco. What chances does a foreign entity stand, given an uber protectionist and hypersensitive GoI?

From Tesla to Solar City - Elmo's companies have been historically kept out of Indian market by the GoI. What makes Starlink different?
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It's historically true that we made it tough for Elon which is why these new developments are puzzling to me.

First the thing about no auction of spectrum and now this.

Screenshot from 2024-12-02 19-59-57.webp


Screenshot from 2024-12-02 19-59-29.webp
 
crazywithmath said:
Oneweb is yet to launch in India - despite the deep political connections of Sunil Mittal. And this is an entity that is financially backed by an Indian telco. What chances does a foreign entity stand, given an uber protectionist and hypersensitive GoI?

From Tesla to Solar City - Elmo's companies have been historically kept out of Indian market by the GoI. What makes Starlink different?
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I am not satellite tech guy, so i am gonna sound naive to say this, but i do not think you can do anything about satellite sending signal to a reciever terminal that is not static.
Its like having a satellite phone - you can only trace it at best when its in use and it can roam around switched off as it wishes.
Starlink is capable of this. So how exactly are we supposed to stop this, short of trying to blow up the satellite itself, which is still absurdly difficult and sparks worldwide condemnation for starting 'space war'.
 
Its coming anyway, even if India bans the Starlink dish which is not bigger than a iPad can be sourced and connected on US connection from anywhere on planet eventually.

I think thats why Modi govt wants to bring it formally. The only argument they have more collective good than bad thats the moto of this Government everywhere not a step to please the fanboyz
 
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