Eight governments in Asia imposed 55 internet shutdowns in 2023 with a majority of them recorded in Iran and India, according to an analysis by virtual private network provider Surfshark, published on Thursday.

India imposed 11 internet restrictions throughout 2023, of which eight were in relation to anti-government protests, the Surfshark report said. “This includes the ongoing mobile data service suspension in specific districts of Manipur,” the analysis notes. India had imposed 10 internet bans in 2022.

Jammu and Kashmir, which recorded 42 internet shutdowns in 2022 – the highest in a single region in the world – saw a significant reduction to four “short-term” internet shutdowns in 2023, according to the analysis.

Iran’s 29 internet shutdowns in 2023 were all related to anti-government protests, the analysis said.

“Other Asian countries and territories grappling with restricted internet access included Pakistan (four cases)...Yemen (three), Turkey (two) and Iraq (one),” Surfshark’s analysis said.

With India, Iran, Pakistan and Bangladesh holding general elections in 2024, they “are at risk of more restrictions as elections draw near”, given their track record of imposing internet shutdowns in the past, Surfshark said.

An estimated 1.9 billion people were impacted by internet shutdowns in Asia in 2023, according to the analysis.

Also read: World’s longest internet shutdown of 2023 was in Manipur, says report