Excelsior Correspondent
UDHAMPUR/GANDERBAL (JK), Aug 17: The residents of Udhampur and Ganderbal districts were delighted and relieved with the restoration of 4G mobile internet services after a gap of over a year and said on Monday it would help them carry out various activities, be it online classes or professional work, with ease amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Jammu and Kashmir administration restored the high-speed mobile internet services on Sunday night on a trial basis in Udhampur and Ganderbal districts — one each in Jammu and Kashmir divisions — over a year after the facility was suspended following the abrogation of special status to the erstwhile state on August 5 last year.
“It is a welcome decision as you cannot keep pace with the outside world using low-speed internet, especially at a time when the pandemic has brought normal life to a grinding halt and led to a manifold increased in people’s dependence on cyberspace,” Arjun Khajuria, a resident of Udhampur town, said.
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Khajuria, a software engineer who had returned home from Delhi opting the work-from-home option, said working on 2G mobile internet was a big headache and that he was unable to complete the tasks assigned by his company.
“As the clock struck 9 pm, everyone who had got the information started surfing the net and it was a pleasant surprise to have 4G mobile internet connectivity. I am relieved now,” he said.
Rahul Sharma, who is also working in a private company in Delhi, said he used to start the day looking for broadband connection or internet cafe.
“Despite working from 9 am to 5 pm, there was no work satisfaction. The frequent disturbance by visitors and threat to get infected was always there,” he said.
A 24-year-old university student from Ganderbal, Farhat Nabi, was delighted with the restoration of the high-speed mobile internet.
“It is a very good decision. I am very happy that finally 4G has been restored and now we feel connected to the digital world in the real sense…. The 2G speed was too low to open webpages and to have smooth online classes. We faced a lot of problems,” he said.
Nabi is also happy for another reason as he is an avid gamer. “I play several online games on my mobile…. It will be smoother now,” he said.
Raouf Ahmad, a 29-year-old professional in the tourism sector, said with the restoration of the high-speed mobile internet services, work-from-home would become easier.
“We have been working from home for some time now, but faced several issues due to low-speed connectivity. Video calls and conferences would be much better now and transferring data and presentations would be a lot easier,” said Ahmad, a resident of Ganderbal.
“The resumption of the high-speed mobile internet service ended our worries with regard to the future of our children who were forced to stay at home due to the COVID-19 pandemic since March,” Prashant Sharma, whose son is a Class 7 student in Army Public School, said in Udhampur.
“They were facing a lot of problems to get connected to the virtual classrooms, which have become a new order, due to low speed internet connectivity. We were afraid that our child will not be able to pursue his education and might lose a precious year,” Sharma said.
He said the children faced no problem with internet connectivity this morning.
“You cannot run a virtual class at 2G speed. We are doing our best to help the students to get their lessons so that they are able to prepare for the annual examination but the low speed of the internet sometimes was playing the spoilsport,” Anju Sharma, a private school teacher in Udhampur, said expressing satisfaction over the restoration of the high-speed mobile internet services in the district.
Radha Krishan Sharma, a 72-year-old resident of Udhampur, was worried about not being able to fill up an online application to get the recently introduced domicile certificate.
“I had a permanent resident certificate and despite repeated attempts could not fill up the online application for the domicile certificate due to slow internet speed. I visited the local Tehsil office but was told that I have to submit the application through online mode only,” he said, adding he is now hopeful of getting the domicile certificate without any further delay.
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