SRINAGAR – The Kashmir Press Club (KPC) in Srinagar on Tuesday expressedserious concern over the “unprecedented communication blockade” in thevalley and criticised authorities for allegedly asking some seniorjournalists to vacate their government accommodation.
The KPC also described the action as “harassment aimed at coercingjournalists to toe a particular line”.
Denouncing the curbs imposed on media and journalists, the press club’sexecutive committee said in a meeting that due to “unprecedentedcommunication blockade” affecting mobile telephony, Internet and telephonelandlines, journalists have been “crippled, overwhelmingly disabling themfrom reporting the ground situation”.
“Since the communication blockade was imposed over the region on August 5,the club took up the issue with government authorities on severaloccasions, urging them to restore mobile phones, Internet and telephonelandlines to journalists and media outlets, including newspapers, and alsothe club itself,” it said.
“But all these efforts have proved to be futile as these services have notbeen restored to journalists till date,” the KPC said in a statement.
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It said currently, hundreds of journalists – both local and visiting andmedia workers – are forced to wait in queues for their turn to fileassignments at the makeshift media facilitation centre here.
“The centre is equipped with only five computers and a low speed Internetconnection,” the statement said.