Kashmir’s Internet blocked for six months and counting
A reporter checks the English Pakistani newspaper Dawn on an Indian government computer in Srinagar provided during a ban on Internet access in Kashmir since Aug. 5, 2019. Photo by Basit Zargar.
SRINAGAR — In the Himalayan valley of Kashmir, under military curfew since Aug. 5, locals have been forced to live without Internet and mobile phone service for the longest stretch of time in any democracy. It’s not easy.
Companies that relied on the Internet have shut down, with some 500,000 people laid off in the last six months. Booking flights, trains, hotels or cabs online is no longer possible. Students cannot apply for admissions to schools online or follow their course requirements. Journalists must wait for hours to file stories online from a government Internet server in the capital Srinagar or travel about a day’s journey outside of the region to access the Internet.
On Jan. 14, the government announced that low speed mobile internet (2G) would be restored in 20 percent of Kashmir Valley, where most of the Muslim-majority region’s population lives. But only 153 “white listed sites” are accessible while everything else online remains censored.
The move came after the Indian Supreme Court asked the government to review the Internet ban in Kashmir, calling Internet access a human right and essential to freedom of speech. News websites have not been included in the list of white listed sites.
India’s Hindu nationalist-led government stripped Kashmir of its limited autonomy written into the constitution (Article 370) and demoted the region from its statehood and democratic representation in the parliament to territories ruled by Delhi.
Article 370 prevented non-Kashmiris from buying property. Kashmiris fear the move could pave way for the settlement of Hindus in Kashmir and change its Muslim-majority character. Proponents of the change say that outside businesses will have an easier time setting up shop in Kashmir now, which will bring more jobs to the region that has depended on industries like silk, wool and carpet textiles, cement and tourism.
Start-ups suffer
The Internet ban has hit the “Start Up India” program touted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Many start-ups are downsizing their businesses, with some at the verge of closing.
For example, 10 years ago, Mohammad Shafiq Badakshi (42) left a lucrative banking job to open a finance and trading company. It was a risky thought to start a business in a region riddled with conflict and violence for decades. But the idea clicked. At one time, he employed over 400 people.
Since the Internet ban, he has been forced to lay off most of his staff. Badakshi says he will wait for one more month and if Internet isn't restored, he will have no other option but to shut down his company completely. Badakshi is looking for a new job for himself now and isn’t able to pay his office rent anymore.
“I had my office housed in several rooms, but now it has shrunk to just one room,” Badakshi said. “I paid salaries to my staff for three months from August with the hope that things will improve, but with no hope in sight, I have retrenched most of my staff. In Kashmir we have seen agitations and long spells of unrest in the past, but never has the situation been this bad.”
He has stationed one employee in Delhi for the last two months to run operations. “This incurs a cost, but with no certainty about Internet restoration in Kashmir, this is the only option.”
Internet shutdown slowing economy
According to a study by Delhi-based International Council of Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER), the frequent Internet shutdowns have caused a loss of around $571 million USD on Kashmir’s economy in the last six years.
A recent report by the Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industries (KCCI) puts the loss at $2.57 billion USD and records nearly 500,000 jobs lost since August 2019.
A Srinagar based travel agency which didn’t want to be named has moved its offices and staff to Jammu last month to avoid a closure.
“We had no choice,” its owner said. “Our business is entirely dependent on the Internet. It was not possible to operate from Kashmir without Internet.”
The Internet blackout in Kashmir has also impacted the courier series as online tracking of courier cannot be done without Internet. The courier service providers also face the problem of contacting their customers, as most have provided their pre-paid mobile numbers, the pre-paid mobile service in Kashmir has been blocked by the government.
The mobile phone sector is one of the worst hit sectors. Kashmir has more than 3 million mobile phone users and 1,450 registered retail mobile stores that employ 8,000 people. People connected with cell phone business say sales have dropped by 90 percent due to the Internet block and hundreds in the mobile phone sector are at the verge of losing their jobs.
Manzoor Mir, working at a cell phone store in Srinagar, hasn’t received his salary of 15,000 rupees or $215 USD since August.
“The reason my salary has not be credited is because I have failed to mark my attendance online due to the Internet blockade,” Mir said. “We have to meet a target of selling at least one mobile phone in a day then only my salary will be released.”
Yaseen Bhat, who runs a mobile store in Srinagar, says on an average day before August 5, he sold 150 mobile phones. Now that number has come down to just five phones a day. “Mobile phone companies are blacklisting Kashmir for want of sales,” Bhat said.
Journalism hampered
The Internet blockade has also made reporting extremely difficult for journalists in Kashmir. Their biggest challenge right now is how to file a story.
When the lockdown first started, some reporters flew into Kashmir in the morning, worked during the day, and returned to Delhi or other places in the evening to file their stories. Others loaded the stories on flash drives and sent them to Delhi through other people flying out of Kashmir.
After facing criticism, the government established a media center with 10 Internet-enabled computers. Hundreds of journalists line up at those fixed computers every day waiting for their turn to file their stories, which are recorded and monitored.
“There is absolutely no secrecy at the media center,” said Zahid Ahmad, a photo journalist.
The journalists have staged protests and called for restoration of Internet on several occasions.
“We demand opening up of internet for journalists,” said Sheikh Tariq, a Kashmir-based journalist. “Demanding internet is no crime, it is our basic right.”
Students suffer
Education has also been badly hit due to the lockdown in Kashmir since Aug. 5. Students have stopped going to schools and colleges. Those preparing for competitive exams for university entrances are the hardest hit. Due to the blockade they haven’t been able go online to download and submit exam forms and applications. The government has set up Internet kiosks in district headquarters across Kashmir, but the students say that the Internet terminals are overcrowded with very slow speeds.
“My exam begins next week, but I have no clue where my examination center is,” said Sameena appearing for medical postgraduate examination.
With no end to the Internet blockade in sight, students who can afford to have moved out of Kashmir.
“I went to Delhi in the month of September to download study materials,” said Riyaz Ahmad preparing for Phd entrance exam. “I could afford to do that, but I think not everybody can do that.”
Zaffar Iqbal is a journalist based in Kashmir India. He has reported for 18 years on armed encounters, environmental issues, crime, politics, culture and human rights. He’s formerly the bureau chief of Jammu and Kashmir for NDTV.