In conflict-ridden Kashmir, the advent of high-speed internet (primarily 4G) had spurred creativity and business opportunities. But all that came to an abrupt end last year on August 5 when the BJP-led Central government decided to revoke the autonomy of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) and split the state into the two Union territories (UT)of Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir. On January 9, the Supreme Court, while hearing a petition on the ban on 4G internet in Kashmir, said the internet was part of the freedom of speech, suggesting it was a fundamental right that can’t be taken away.
However, the Jammu and Kashmir government, citing national security, refused to restore the 4G in the Union territory. Kashmir is no stranger to internet disruptions, but last year’s disruption is the longest in the former state’s history and in any part of India.
Last year, a study by Delhi-based think-tank International Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER), said the frequent internet disruptions had cost Kashmir’s economy Rs 4,000 crore in the last six years. Titled The Anatomy of An Internet Blackout: Measuring the Economic Impact of Internet Shutdowns in India, the study highlighted that 34 shutdowns in 2017 alone caused the loss of Rs 1,776 crore.
One of the worst victims of the ban on 4G in Kashmir has been the information technology (IT) sector .Around 1,200 IT professionals were working for seven different companies at the industrial complex at Rangreth in Srinagar. The internet connection to the complex was never disrupted before August last year. After August 5 last year, many IT firms had to lay off most of the staff as the business came to a halt despite the most stringent security protocols for the sector.
According to an IT professional, each service provider has to maintain a log of each uniform resource locator (URL) accessed by them and their clients through the commercial leased lines and report to the authorities on a daily basis. “Yet, the internet was blocked by the IT firm at Rangreth,’’ he said. He said initially they sent some of the staff to Delhi to communicate with their clients but later it became very cumbersome and they lost a lot of business. After several weeks, some IT firms decided to sign a security bond with the internet service providers to resume service. But it was never business as usual.
Other businesses suffered too.
Syed Ashfaq, who quit a successful banking job to start a financial and data management service, said curbs on high-speed internet has shut his profitable venture.
He said trading of stocks and shares online has come to a halt after the communication blockade.
“I paid the salaries of my staff for three months without work after August 5, 2019,’’ he said. “After that I had to lay off most of my staff.’’ He said he had to vacate his spacious rented office and shift to a room as there was no business.
“If the situation doesn’t improve quickly, I will have to look for a job,” he said. “I find it tough to even pay the fee of my two kids.”
Muhammad Zaid Khan, a GST practitioner, said after August last year, they were not able to file the GST and other tax returns of the clients online.
“Some of my clients went to Delhi to submit their returns while others had to pay penalties for missing the deadline,’’ Khan said. “The government later exempted penalties for Kashmiri businessmen but those who had already paid the penalties are yet to receive that money back.”
Businessmen selling walnuts and almonds online also took a hit. Shabir Ahmed, a walnut dealer, said he used to sell his crop online without any hassle.
“We used to advertise our products on India-mart. We would also upload photos and videos of our products, packings and rates but after communication blockade, everything came to a halt,’’ Ahmed said. “Business worth crores has shrunk to a few lakh rupees.”
Gowhar Dhar, owner of DZ International, a leading service provider for website development and design, said he lost most of his business after the internet was blocked. “We used to provide services to more than a 100 media houses before August last year,’’ Dhar said. “We also had clients in the US. Today, we are struggling to survive as there is hardly any business. We have also cut staff by 70 per cent.”
He said they had also diversified into diagnostics. “We had tie-ups with laboratories in Mumbai and our business was good,’’ he said. He said the blood samples of the patients would be taken in the morning and the same would reach Mumbai in a flight by noon. “The report would reach us online the next [day],” he said. “It was not only quick but cheaper.”
The ban on the internet also killed the dreams of artists like Syed Mujtaba Rizvi. After studying management of innovation from Goldsmiths from the University of London, Rizvi dreamt of taking the rich art of Kashmir to places. He pinned his hopes on Kashmir Art Quest, an online initiative that brought 435 local artists together to display contemporary art to prospective buyers across the world through social media. The Kashmir Art Quest held annual exhibitions from 2010, except in 2019. The high point of the initiative was participating in the popular Kochi-Muziris Biennale in Kochi. He said the internet was the medium that helped budding artists to display their work and monetise it.
He said more than the money it was the thrill of getting noticed and appreciated. ”Without internet, it was not possible and then all of a sudden everything was shut,’’ he said.
He said after weighing his options he decided to look for a job.
“Initially, I thought I should go back to London as I had an offer but then I thought leaving home is going to be a long haul and decided to take another job offer in a company in Chennai,’’ he said. “Because of work experience in creativity and art, I got a good offer.’’
He said he feels very emotional whenever he thinks of Kashmir.
The internet had also spurred the growth of many start-ups like courier services in Kashmir such as Fastbeetle in Srinagar. After a humble start, the service grew quickly with over 15,000 customers and a turnover that touched Rs 2 crore in a year. But the successful venture was left grounded after the internet was snapped following the removal of Article 370. Around 3,000 courier boys lost their jobs after August last year.
According to Zahoor Qari, president of Kashmir Courier Service Association, courier boys would be paid on the basis of commission by the companies but after the last year’s lockdown, most of them are jobless. In fact, most courier companies outside Kashmir have scaled down their business in Kashmir. That has also impacted the online shopping by people in Kashmir.
The disruption of the internet resulted in the loss of 80 per cent of jobs among start-ups dependent on the internet including clothing stores by women under brand names such as Tulpav and Hangers. The two clothing brands became a runaway hit with women in Kashmir and abroad as they designed traditional Kashmir women’s attire with a modern touch.
“I used to display my products on social media sites and get good orders,’’ said a woman entrepreneur. “Now with 2G speed, I cannot upload the videos of my products. Even if I get the high-speed broadband from BSNL or jiofibre, it is of no use unless my clients also have access to high-speed internet.”
Jammu and Kashmir, according to the Unemployment in India report by the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), has fared “poorly in generating jobs for its young population,” which constitutes 60 per cent of the total population. “The unemployment rate in the erstwhile state stood at 15.89 per cent in the first four months of 2019, making it one of the worst performers on the job generation front,” the CMIE report stated. It pointed out that the unemployment rate among graduate job seekers in Kashmir stood at 25.2 per cent for this year.