Srinagar: After struggling to connect and use VPN (virtual private network) apps over the last three days, Nasir was shocked to see his smartphone light up with unexpected 4G connectivity on Sunday night.

He sprang out of bed with excitement and called one of his friends to see whether it was really 4G or a dream. Some of his friends woke up and rushed to quickly check their own smartphones.

It has now been seven months since residents of the Jammu and Kashmir union territory have had proper internet connectivity. Slow-speed 2G services were introduced only in January 2020 and can only be used to access a pre-approved whitelist of websites.

The confusion that Nasir felt then was real, although short-lived, as connectivity was snapped within hours. It appeared to be a technical glitch on the part of the J&K administration.

“I updated all the applications on my phone for the first time in the last seven months. I was lucky enough to make a video call to a few of my friends outside as well,” said Nasir, who goes by only one name and is a third-year college student from Baramulla.

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On Sunday at around 12:30 am, Kashmiri users took to social media with excitement and joy as for the first time after seven months, 4G internet appeared to have been restored on some networks.

Most of the users came up with memes and funny tweets on their social media handles and celebrated the moment of joy.

Nasir also opened his WhatsApp to write, “Ek dam se waqt badal diye, Jazbaat badal diye, Zindagi Badal diye.”

He wrote fearlessly, hoping that now using social media wouldn’t be a trouble for him. “We are being treated as criminals if we use the internet via VPN. It was a great moment to use it without VPN,” he said.

After administration resumed 2G speed internet in Jammu and Kashmir in January, there were 301 white-listed websites (later expanded to over a thousand) which people could access. All other websites, including social media platforms, remain blocked. Restoration of 2G internet services has given people little relief as the speed is too slow to do anything.

Soon the usage of VPNn became common among Kashmiri users, with most of them using the internet and social media through those apps.

The administration says that they have succeeded in building firewalls for VPNs and now almost all VPN usage has stopped.

Other users, who went to bed early on Sunday night, heard about the temporary restoration of 4G in the morning from their friends.

Mohd Asif, 28, from Shopian district is one among many who couldn’t use the high-speed internet. He regrets it now, as many of his friends make jokes at his expense. “At least I would have updated my phone,” he says mournfully, adding that many of his friends made fun of him for missing out on it.

The sudden restoration of 4G on Sunday night nevertheless gave J&K residents some hope, as it allowed them to temporarily make calls to their loved ones who are residing in different countries.

Farhan Ashraf, another Kashmiri user, tweeted that it looks like a mistake but she is enjoying it.

The restoration of internet services was indeed a mistake, with some news publications even referring to it as a loophole or poor prank.

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For Asif, the “loophole” would have given him hope and it would have broken his heart now. “We are living in a stone age. We don’t deserve high-speed internet,” he said sarcastically.

Another Kashmiri user who declined to be identified told The Wire that it felt surreal. “It was as if being unshackled. Videos played without buffering was heavenly but unbelievable. I thought I was dreaming.”

“Firewalls are high on w***, showering speed,” wrote Hussain Aabid Lone on his Facebook timeline soon after it occurred to many that the internet had been resumed.

But many users were heartbroken when they woke up in the morning and saw that nothing was working on their phones.

Kashmir was once again effectively offline and for most of them, 4G speed was really a dream.

Quratulain Rehbar is a Kashmir-based freelance journalist.

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