The Jammu and Kashmir government ordered the suspension of social media networks in the valley for a period of one month or till further orders. The state home department invoked powers conferred on it under the Indian Telegraph Act and Information Technology Act to suspend the internet services. Facebook is used to circulate videos that raise passion and mobilise crowds,” a senior People’s Democratic Party leader had told Firstpost, on condition of anonymity. “This is also the opinion of the security agencies.”

“It is a preventive measure to save human lives and to prevent rumours which deteriorate the situation,” Waheed Para, the Youth President of the ruling PDP told Newslaundry. He described it as a “temporary ban on some social networking sites till the situation improves, whereas the 2G services and internet will work.”

Mir Shariq Mushtaq, a 23-year-old budding entrepreneur who runs Media Mail, an advertising and branding start-up in Srinagar, is unable to work these days, courtesy the latest state imposed internet ban that was enforced in the wake of student protests that spread across the valley. Without proper online access, his designers can’t email bigger files to his clients in Delhi and Chandigarh. He can’t get back to his clients regularly on email. His start-up, already under strain from last summer’s shutdowns, is again suffering losses this year due frequent internet blockades.

“Our whole production has come to a halt due to yet another internet ban,” rued Mushtaq. “More than 70 per cent of our business has been affected due to the recent Internet blockade.”

For Shariq, terms like ‘digital India’ and ‘high speed internet’ are meaningless every time internet services are banned in Kashmir by the state authorities. “We don’t demand anything big from the government, which has not taken a single step for the welfare of entrepreneurs here, but at least don’t deny us the basic facilities like internet which is the lifeline of our small businesses,” he says. “This way you’re depriving us of our basic rights and creating more unemployment.”

Shariq believes frequent and blanket internet shutdowns don’t serve any purpose, and make little sense. “The turmoil in Kashmir is not because of some Facebook, WhatsApp posts and Internet misuse,” he pointed out. “It is because of bullets,” he said.  “So you have to first stop firing them and blocking Internet will not solve any issue. It will only end up worsening the situation.”

“Since Internet was blocked, we are not able to update orders and update our website,” said Muheet Mehraj, 26, founder and CEO of Kashmir Box, an e-commerce platform that works with the art, craft and produce community of Kashmir.  KashmirBox.com, according to Mehraj, currently holds the largest collection of Kashmiri products online. “For an e-commerce platform, not having internet is just disastrous,” he said.

“Customers call us and we have to bear the brunt, they wouldn’t care about the internet shutdown after all they’ve paid for their orders,” he said, adding that they are losing customers, and many rarely return. “If the Internet ban continues like this, it’s is putting livelihoods at risk and poses a threat to our existence.”

The last internet ban was imposed on April 17 when mobile internet services were shutdown yet again by the state authorities as student protests – against the recent clashes between students and police in Pulwama district, in which many students were injured—spread across the valley.

In the latest order issued today about the social media ban, the government has said that the “continued misuse of social networking sites and instant messaging services are likely to be detrimental to the interests of peace and tranquillity in the state.”

Last year, following Hizbul Mujahideen commander, Burhan Wani’s killing in July, internet services were cut off for nearly four months in Kashmir, leading to ‘over 2920 hours without access’.

In 2016, the internet was suspended ten times, which was the longest in a period of six months in Kashmir. Mobile internet was also suspended for over five months in 2016 (July 9 – November 19). Pre-paid mobile services also remained suspended until January 27, 2017.

As per internetshutdowns.in, a website which tracks incidents of internet shutdowns across India, internet services were shut down for a total 31 times in J&K from 2012 to 2017.  As per the website, internet services were banned three times in 2012, five times each in 2013, 2014 and 2015, 10 times in 2016, and four times this year, (so far).

Zubair Butt, a 27-year-old Wood Technologist who runs Butt Joinery Mills, making wooden products for his clients in Kashmir and outside the state, said frequent internet bans in Kashmir severely affects his business since they rely on good internet connectivity to reach out to more clients.

“Whenever I would come up with an innovative wooden product, I would upload its photographs and other detailed specifics on various social media platforms so that more people online would be able to see and buy my products,” he said. “But frequent internet bans deprive me of this facility which is vital for my unit to grow.”

Muhammad Yasin Khan, the Chairman of Kashmir Economic Alliance says fifty per cent of business transactions are carried out online with the help of internet services, both by customers and traders, which have come to a halt due to suspended internet services imposed by the state.  “We urge government to come out from this mindset and put an end to this [internet suspension] practice immediately,” he said.

Athar Yameen, General Secretary of Travel Agents Society of Kashmir said the tourist and travel industry in Kashmir is also paralysed due to the frequent internet shutdowns. “We are totally dependent on internet for our business, from booking of hotels, travel and stay,” he elaborates.  “If tourists don’t get quick responses from us via internet, they have many choices and they can choose some other places which translate into losses for our industry.”

Yameen says the tour and travel industry is still in shock and yet to recover from losses suffered since July last year, following valley wide protests and shutdowns.  “And this year’s internet shutdowns don’t help at all as our industry suffers more from these harsh measures,” he says. “Our industry does negligible business whenever the state imposes internet ban here.”

Mehraj Gulzar, who runs an IT solutions company in Srinagar, said the whole IT sector is dependent on continued internet access. “My employees can’t work if internet services are snapped,” he said, adding that frequent internet blockades over the years have resulted in a lot of job losses, especially in the IT sector of the valley.

Gulzar claimed the problem is that the state authorities see everything in Kashmir through the prism of law and order. “Even if you have to temporarily block some social media sites like Facebook, why ban the whole internet services every time?” he asked.

At a time when J&K government does not even have an IT Department, Gulzar stated that the talk of e-governance is a distant dream in Kashmir. “A lot of unemployment has been created by internet ban alone as IT companies suffer losses due to the internet ban which ultimately results in job losses,” he says.

Small IT companies in the valley suffer huge business and employment losses due to frequent, state-imposed internet shutdowns. Gulzar went on to say that as a result, many companies likes his “have now minimized taking permanent employees and most of the IT companies here employ people on contractual and project basis given the losses they suffer from frequent internet bans.”

Omaira Qayoom Khan, 28, who runs Craft World Kashmir, an online store that sells crochet work and floral jewellery, said the internet was the only medium through which they were running their venture in absence of their own showroom.  “We used to upload our product pictures and our customers would select their favourite products through emails, Instagram and Facebook pages where we would regularly upload our latest products,” she said, adding that the net ban has choked their small business venture.

Omaira says they are unable to display online all their products for their clients and potential customers, given the latest internet ban.

The latest ban is reportedly for a month. But it remains to be seen if it is the last one for the year.

The author can be contacted on Twitter @MaqboolMajid