Sopore, May 24: The happiness of the residents of Rampura village in the Sopore area of north Kashmir’s Baramulla knew no bounds as they gained access to mobile network connectivity for the first time since the facility was introduced in Kashmir in 2003.
The locals thanked the district administration and Jio telecom service provider for fulfilling their long-pending demand. They said the installation of a Jio tower in the area, facilitated by the intervention of Deputy Commissioner Baramulla Dr Syed Sehrish Asgar, finally addressed their persistent plea for phone connectivity.
“We had acquired mobile phones years back with a hope that the telecom service providers would install a tower soon, but it took 20 long years for the administration to install the facility here,” said Zulfikar Ahmad, a local.
Rampur is a picturesque village located 27 kilometres away from the main town Sopore.
Previously cut off from the rest of the world due to the absence of functional mobile towers, Rampura is now buzzing with Jio connectivity, providing a much-needed sigh of relief to the local populace.
Expressing joy, Nazir Ahmad, another local, termed the development a “milestone” for the village. He said it was the first time that they are enjoying mobile connectivity.
“This will greatly benefit students by enabling them to pursue online education with ease,” Nazir said, adding that the locals will also benefit by availing of various government schemes.
“For the first time, the governance is a click away in Rampur. It is a ‘dream come true’ for us. Now, we too can avail of government schemes, fill online forms and check job advertisements,” he said, adding that the area is no more isolated from the rest of Kashmir.
Mohammad Asrar, a student of GDC Sopore, thanked the administration, especially Deputy Commissioner Baramulla, for delivering on their promise of holistic development in the village.
Mobile phone services were first introduced in Kashmir in 2003 when the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee received the inaugural call from the then-State chief minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed.
