Kashmir Awaits Restoration Of Internet With Hope And Skepticism

Tariq Ahmad’s tourism business has suffered a massive loss of income since an internet blackout was instituted in India-administered Kashmir last August. Ever since, he has not been able to access online booking platforms, contact clients or make payments. The small-business owner wondered how people were supposed to even pay off loans or file tax returns without an internet connection. “Without the internet, we continue to be cut off from the outside world. There is no way we can upload pictures to our websites or use WhatsApp services to attract visitors,” he told DW. Tariq owns four houseboats anchored in the middle of Dal Lake, a picturesque body of water near the capital Srinagar that lines the foothills of the Zabarvan Mountains. Prior to the internet ban, Tariq said, many foreign tourists from the European Union, Russia and Asia-Pacific countries would occupy all ten rooms on his houseboats.