Excelsior Correspondent
KARGIL, June 7: A large number of people, comprising Café Owners, students, shopkeepers and general public today protested against the poor and irritating services of BSNL in Kargil.
The protesters held a strong demonstration before the BSNL authorities of Kargil. As a mark of protest, they also closed gate of the BSNL office. Later a delegation of protestors met the CEC LAHDC Kargil at Council Secretariat and apprised him of their grievances. Following this, a meeting was immediately called by the CEC LAHDC Kargil, which was attended by Executive Councilors, SSP Kargil T Gyalpo and BSNL authorities. During the meeting, the BSNL authorities failed to provide genuine reasons for the repeated failure of services. Lamblasting the authorities of BSNL, the CEC stated that an organization has no right to exist and occupy land if it fails to provide the requisite services. CEC also contacted GM BSNL Ladakh, stationed at Leh, but he also failed to convince the CEC and expressed his helplessness in this regard.
Locals alleged that a reverse of Digital India was being witnessed in Kargil because of incompetence of BSNL authorities. Recently a well-established telephone exchange was closed by BSNL authorities acting on their own whims and caprices. When people sought the reasons for the same from Central Public Information Officer of BSNL Leh, he replied that it was closed because number of subscribers was below norms. However, the copy of norms, issued by the office of Sr General Manager (NW Operations), clearly states that even if the number of subscribers dips below the number stated in the norms, it cannot be closed, if important customers like State and Central Government departments, law enforcement agencies and banks are being served. The area has offices of all key departments of State Government and besides this, police, Army and ITBP are also stationed there. The minimum number of customers as per the norms of closure is twenty. It is ironical that BSNL is claiming that a Tehsil headquarter has less than twenty customers. Due to poor services, the telephone devices were returned back to BSNL as a mark of protest by the Councilor of this area, but instead of improving the services, the exchange was itself closed.
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