Jammu: Broadband internet service was restored in government-run hospitals and SMS facility on all mobile phones from Tuesday midnight in Kashmir, after over four-and-a-half months of suspension.
Internet services, landline and mobile phones were snapped across Jammu and Kashmir on August 4, a day before the Centre's announcement to scrap the special status of Jammu and Kashmir and divide it into two union territories.
Though most services, except mobile internet, were restored in Jammu within a week, Kashmir saw landlines and post-paid services being restored in phases.
"It has been decided to restore internet connectivity to all government hospitals with effect from midnight of December 31 besides fully restoring SMS on mobile phones," Jammu and Kashmir administration spokesman Rohit Kansal told reporters here.
However, Internet and pre-paid mobile services in Kashmir are yet to be restored.
On December 10, he had said machine-based SMSes were enabled for mobile phones in Kashmir in order to facilitate students, scholarship aspirants, traders and others, and that restoration of full message services was part of the process.
"We have been moving progressively forward and we will try to ensure as much and as quickly as possible," Kansal, who is also principal secretary for planning, development and monitoring in the Union Territory administration of Jammu and Kashmir, said in response to a question about the restoration of Internet services.
He said that "our direction has been progressive, positive, and movement forward".
On August 5, the Centre had abrogated Article 370 provisions that gave special status to J-K and bifurcated the erstwhile state into UTs of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.
Five political leaders, who had been under preventive detention since August 5, were released from the MLA hostel in Srinagar on Monday. Former chief ministers Farooq Abdullah, Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti are still under detention.
On demands from various quarters on reservation for educated local youths in government jobs, Kansal said, "there have been various suggestions that have been received by the government and these are under examination".
He denied any discrimination in the distribution of compensation to farmers affected by unprecedented snowfall and rains in the regions of Jammu and Kashmir, and said "this government is absolutely fair, impartial and people-friendly."
The people will be given their rights in accordance with the rules, Kansal said.
