5 months on, prepaid voice calling, SMS back in J&K

Amit Khajuria
Tribune News Service
Jammu, January 18

The Jammu and Kashmir Government today restored voice calling and SMS on local prepaid mobile phone connections across the Kashmir division along with 2G mobile data for 12 districts, including Kupwara and Bandipora, of the Union Territory.

The administration has also issued a list of 153 ‘white-listed websites’, which would be accessible on the 2G Internet in all 10 districts of the Jammu division and two districts — Kupwara and Bandipora — of the Kashmir division.

The mobile phone Internet connectivity would, however, remain suspended in the districts of Srinagar, Budgam, Ganderbal, Baramulla, Anantnag, Kulgam, Shopian and Pulwama.

“The companies that are engaged in software services (in the Kashmir division) would be provided with fixed-line Internet connectivity with precautions as per the order issued by the Home Department last week,” said Rohit Kansal, Principal Secretary (Planning).

Regarding the details of the ‘white-listed companies’, Kansal said the competent authority had released a list of all 153 websites that had been identified for the ‘white-list’ category.

The list includes Google, Gmail, rediffmail, Yahoo Mail and Outlook mail along with banking, education, employment, entertainment, government services, travel, utilities, weather and automobile sites. Only these sites would be accessible on 2G mobile Internet restored in 12 districts of J&K.

Kansal said to consider provision of mobile Internet connectivity on pre-paid SIM cards, the telecom service providers would initiate the process for verification of credentials of these subscribers as per the norms applicable for postpaid connections.

The government had ordered restoration of 2G mobile data services on the post-paid mobiles for accessing white-listed sites in five districts of the Jammu division on January 15.

SLOW ROAD TO CONNECTIVITY

• Aug 5, 2019: All mobile and landline phone services snapped in Kashmir valley
• Aug 17: Partial resumption of fixed line telephony in Kashmir
• Oct 14: Post-paid cellphone services without Internet restored in Valley
• Dec 10: SMS partially restored with OTP facility for online biz
• Dec 31: Broadband in all govt-run hospitals and SMS restored across Kashmir
• Jan 14: Cellphone network in five Jammu districts, broadband at institutes back
• Jan 18: Calling services, SMS on prepaid mobile phones back

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