Prepaid mobile connections restored in Jammu and Kashmir

Jammu, January 18

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Prepaid mobile connections were restored in Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday and 2G services resumed in two districts of the Valley after being disconnected in August last year, official said here.

Voice and SMS facilities were restored for all local prepaid mobile phones across the Union territory.

Rohit Kansal, the principal secretary to the administration of Jammu and Kashmir, said the order would come into effect from Saturday.

In order to consider giving mobile Internet connectivity on such SIM cards, the telecom service providers would have to verify the credentials of the subscribers, he said.

Internet service providers have been asked to provide fixed line Internet connectivity in all 10 districts of Jammu region and two districts, Kupwara and Bandipora, in north Kashmir.

Telecom services were shut in the entire Jammu and Kashmir on August 5 when the Centre abrogated special status to the erstwhile state and also bifurcated it into union territories.

However, the Supreme Court came down heavily on the UT administration last week for arbitrarily shutting down the Internet, the facility described as the fundamental right by the apex court. PTI