Overload On Train To Kashmir's Internet Oasis

Every day the train to Kashmir’s remote cyber oasis Banihal is packed as people travel for hours to get online in the region where the Internet has been cut for five months. The mountain town of fewer than 4,000 people has six Internet cafes, which are booming due to a security clampdown by the government. “The speed is very slow,” admitted Irfan, manager of one of the cafes where customers pay up to Rs. 3,000 an hour to link their laptop to the snail’s-pace broadband.

“Scores of Kashmiris, mostly students and income tax professionals, come visiting every day,” said Irfan, who only gave one name. In early August, the central government made a sudden move to revoke Kashmir’s semi-autonomous status, shutting down communications and sending tens of thousands of extra troops into what was already one of the world’s most militarized zones. While phone calls and very limited text messages are now possible, the Internet is still down. Forcing people offline has crippled the economy and made it impossible to pay utility bills, make applications or just send a message to family outside the stricken zone.

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