It was in the last week of August 2019 that landlines were restored to subscribers connected with Barzulla and Sonawar telephone exchanges. Landlines phones of subscribers, including all media organizations, from main BSNL telephone exchange were restored only on September 5.
A number of petitions were filed in the Supreme Court (SC) challenging ban on the communication network in the J&K.
Later, on the directions of the SC a committee was constituted to review the restoration of the mobile internet every week.
The post-paid mobile phone service was restored on October 14 while the SMS service for BSNL started from December 31 midnight. The pre-paid mobile service was on January 19, 2020 restored after remaining suspended for 168 days in Kashmir valley.
Due to suspension of internet service, journalists working for different media organisations, including News Agencies, were badly hit. However, later administration set up a media facilitation centre at Sonawar in the city.
The centre was later shifted to Directorate Information Office in Srinagar, where journalists used to file their stories to their respective media organisations.
Jammu and Kashmir government in the last week of January 2020 lifted six-month-long ban on mobile internet.
However, only 2G services were restored while the gag on high-speed internet continued.
The 2G mobile internet service was resumed on January 25 though social media sites were banned and government had directed people to access only white-listed sites. In the first week of March, broadband internet services of all cellular companies, including state-run BSNL, was restored after remaining suspended for over seven months while gag on social media was also lifted. But, the gag on high speed internet continued.
Later, 4G internet service was restored on trial basis in central Kashmir district of Ganderbal and Udhampur in Jammu region.
The issue was also raised in Parliament by the members from Jammu and Kashmir. The matter was also raised with the members of Parliamentary Standing Committee (PSC) during their recent visit to Kashmir valley.
The students were the worst hit as they had to attend their on-line classes on 2G that too was being suspended in areas where encounters were taking place.
UNI
