By Umer Ahad
Baramulla: Visitors and residents of Baba Reshi in the Tangmarg area of North Kashmir’s Baramulla district are aghast over the poor Jio connectivity in the area.
Aggrieved subscribers told Kashmir Images that they have been facing huge inconvenience due to frequent poor network connectivity. “We are not able to access the internet or even make regular calls,” they said, adding that “businessmen, students, and those associated with tourism are facing a lot of hardships.”
Alleging that the authorities are playing down the issue, they said that despite many appraisals, the authorities are yet to make any move to redress the problem.
“While the world is witnessing 5G internet connectivity, we don’t even have basic cellular connectivity to call our friends, relatives, and others,” they rued, adding, “We usually have to move to other places to make phone calls as our phones remain out of service, whether we stay indoors or outdoors here.”
“We are unable to make calls as every time we dial the number, the network is either busy or switched off,” the aggrieved people said. “Sometimes, it says the number does not exist or shows a number not registered on the network.”
If the call gets connected at all, the audio quality is so poor that we are left with no option but to disconnect the call, said Taj Irshad, a local.
The locals said that the poor connectivity of the Jio network in the area has taken a toll on shopkeepers who are dependent on online banking. They urged the company to address the issue on priority.
In the meantime, when we contacted Jio representatives, they said that although they had previously asked the J&K Waqaf board officials for permission to install the tower, they had refused to allow us to do so. They added that although the Waqaf board is currently allowing them to do so, we have not yet received approval from the company to install the tower at Babareshi.
