Early Times Report
Jammu, Oct 7: Hundreds of employees and officials engaged in the telecommunication sector in Jammu and Kashmir have been facing uncertain future as two private telecom operators have reportedly decided to close down their businesses in the state due to incurring of losses following communication blockade for the last over two months now.
Sources informed Early Times that two privately owned telecommunication operators have communicated to their staff members to search for new options as it has becoming difficult for the companies to bear the financial burden including salaries of the employees, in the backdrop of communication shutdown.
"Internet services have been completely shut since the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir in the first week of August while the cell-phone connectivity is still out of bounds for Kashmir valley while in few districts of Jammu region including Rajouri, Kishtwar, Poonch, Doda it was restored few weeks back. Due to such blackout the companies have been failed to meet the expenses as the customers have not been able to avail the benefits of mobile phone services, especially in Kashmir valley", sources said, adding that even in Jammu region due to internet shutdown, the telecom companies have been incurring losses.
The employees and officials in the telecom companies have been getting salaries but there was minimum or no work for them, especially in Kashmir valley, where even cell-phone services are not even working", sources said, adding that there were no positive hopes for the restoration of internet services across the state while cell-phone services in Kashmir valley, so two privately owned telecommunication operators have been mulling to close down their business activities in the state.
Sources said that the companies have already communicated to their employees as well as officials to search for job options as they were not able to bear more losses. "There is scarcity of job opportunities in telecom sector and if the privately owned telecom operators would close down the business or retrench the employees and staff, most of them would rendered jobless and would have to join the ever growing unemployment", sources said. |
