Highways Open But Communication Networks in J&K Remain Disrupted

SRINAGAR: Although the flood waters have receded and Jammu and Kashmir is slowly limping out of the crisis, communication lines continue to remain disrupted with the damaged and crippled mobile and internet network making connectivity difficult.

The state government has been making repeated claims about restoring the communication lines but not much is evident on the ground, Despite repeated assurances given to the general public, the telecommunication network is still not functioning properly, with the services where available being extremely slow.

“I am trying to reach out to my relatives in different areas of Srinagar from last 12 days, but all in vain as it always displays “network not available”” said Mohammad Yasin.

The Kashmir valley had been cut off from the rest of world since the floods, with the road and communication networks taking the brunt.Though the road connectivity has been resumed and the highway opened, the telecommunication system is still out of order in the Valley.

There are still many families in Kashmir who have not talked to their relatives since weeks and are worried about their whereabouts.

“I have been told that my brother is safe by many people, but still I had no direct communication with him, it is really worrying us” said Firdous Ahmad of Anantnag whose brother Farooq Ahmad has been in Srinagar since the floods hit out the Valley.

The communication breakdown has often led to many people being declared dead.

“I am alive was the first words of my daughter, when I visited her in the Srinagar. We were told by many people that her body has been recovered from worst hit Rajbagh area” said Showkat Ahmad of South Kashmir, whose daughter was trapped in the floods in Srinagar but was rescued by Air force officers.

Despite many networks displaying signals since Thursday evening, calls cannot be made.

Meanwhile Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has once again called on the telecom operators to resume the services immediately.

The Chief Minister while interacting with the representatives of BSNL, Vodafone, Idea, Reliance and Aircel companies in Srinagar asked them to ensure that optimum power supply is provided to the mobile service providers.