Communication services continued to remain badly disrupted in Haldwani for the past four days with the major service provider BSNl failing to explore alternative options in the wake of Kushmkhera exchange remaining shut.
Following shutting down of the Kushumkhera exchange of the BSNl, all the communication services, including mobile phones, landline phone and internet services, were badly hit, affecting nearly 25, 000 mobile phone and landline phone users, apart from broadband service users.
Some of the areas where the communication services have been badly hit included Kushumkhera, Haldwani block area, RTO office Road, Gas Godam Road, Pilikothi, Basnt Vihar, lamachaur, Kathghariya, Unchapul, Haripurnaik, Kamluwaganja, Kaladhungi Road, to name a few areas.
All the commercial activities based on communication services, including net- banking services, cyber cafes and other online services, have been badly affected due to shutting down of the aforesaid BSNl exchange.
Though banks and some other online service providers have made some alternative arrangements these makeshift arrangements have not sufficed to cater to the thousands of consumers of the region.
The BSNl was running its exchange from a rented accommodation at Kushumkhera. However, an alleged dispute between the house-owner and the BSNl resulted in court’s intervention, finally leading to closure of the BSNl exchange premises at Kushumkhera area on Saturday last.
However, the affected BSNl service users, including the traders associated with the communication services, maintain that the BSNl being a leading communication service provider could have made alternative arrangements to maintain its services. But the officials concerned of the BSNl are not willing to listen, they alleged.
Since a majority of the communication service providers, including the cyber cafe owners and mobile and landline phone users, are BSNl customers the number of people affected is that huge.
They said since the court had given one month to BSNl to shift its exchange from the present site why they have not acted on time, they wondered. The BSNl officials concerned are ‘not willing’ to understand the problems the consumers have been going through.
They are only trying to buy more time, said Prashant, a cyber café owner at Kushumkhera.
However, the officials concerned of the BSNl said that efforts are on to shift the exchange to a new place to restore the services soon.