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Updated: Jan 01, 2020 06:29 IST

Short messaging service (SMS) on all mobile phones in Kashmir, and broadband internet services were restored in government-run hospitals from Tuesday midnight , exactly 150 days after the government imposed restrictions in the Valley. The announcement about resumption of these facilities was made by a senior official on Tuesday.

Mobile phone, landline and internet services were disconnected in the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir on August 4, a day before the Centre withdrew its special status and divided it into two Union territories — Jammu & Kashmir with a legislative assembly and Ladakh without one.

The government has gradually restored phone lines, but internet services and prepaid mobile services remain suspended. While landlines were restored between mid-August and September, postpaid mobile services were back on October 14. Mobile internet services were restored in Kargil, a part of the Union Territory of Ladakh, last week.

“On December 10, machine-based SMS was enabled on mobile phones in Kashmir in order to facilitate students, traders, scholarship applicants and other citizens. Now, it has been decided to resume the SMS facility from midnight of December 31 on mobile phones throughout the Kashmir valley,” J&K administration spokesperson Rohit Kansal said.

“Continuous efforts of the government have been to facilitate and move forward as much as possible and as quickly as possible, and ever since August 5, we have been progressing in this direction both in Jammu and in Kashmir,” he said.

Kansal said the administration was helping students, contractors, tour operators, government officials and others through 900 internet access points set up across Kashmir. “Nearly 600,000 people were benefited...Carrying the process further, it has been decided to restore broadband internet connectivity to government hospitals from midnight of December 31,” he said.

He added that the government has decided to extend the market intervention scheme (MIS) for Kashmir apple growers till March 2020. “19 lakh metric tonnes of apples have already been exported since September, and it has been decided to extend MIS to March 2020,” he said.

Responding to a query on reservation to local youth in government jobs, he said various suggestions were being examined by the administration at the moment.

On detention of three former chief ministers —National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah, his son, Omar Abdullah, and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leader Mehbooba Mufti, he said, ““I am not here to comment on individuals, but I would again say that local authorities assess the situation and take appropriate action. They have being doing so since August 5 and will continue to do so.”

Opposition parties have decried the continued detention of a number of leaders and politicians – including the three former CMs, and criticised the communication blockade.

The central government has maintained that it is committed to the development of Jammu and Kashmir, and Article 370 was nullified to usher in development in the region.