The government of Prime Minister Imran Khan has prepared a plan to expand the coverage of its mobile coverage in Jammu and Kashmir that is not only designed to help Pakistani-trained terrorists infiltrate the valley, but also to neutralize the impact of a future government-imposed communications blockade. people familiar with the matter said.
The plan, according to a senior security official in New Delhi, to modify existing telecommunications towers and build new ones has been in the works for about a year. It was initially conceived to strengthen the existing telephone network to help terrorists who have infiltrated Kashmir. But Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry lobbied hard to expand the exercise and give it the ability to sabotage the communications blockade ordered in Kashmir after the August 5 decision last year to end its special status. He wants the people of Kashmir to use Pakistani telecommunications services that cannot be blocked by the Indian security forces.
Last year, New Delhi shut down the Jammu and Kashmir communication network before the decision to repeal Article 370 was made public in order to ensure that rioters do not spread rumors on and off social media. Since then, the restrictions have been lifted, but local security officials routinely establish telephone links for some time in towns to prevent the spread of rumors. If Pakistan can carry out its plan, this would provide Kashmiris with an alternative to Indian phone companies.
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A top national security planner told the Hindustan Times that Pakistan’s Special Communications Organization (SCO), the state-owned company charged with providing telecommunications services in Pakistani-occupied Kashmir and the Gilgit-Baltistan region, had analyzed signs of 38 sites along the Line of Control. and the International Border with India. He has told the military that Pakistan could have an indirect effect through 28 existing telephone towers. According to their analysis, the GSM antenna would need to be reoriented in 18 locations to achieve this goal, although it would reduce coverage on its side of the LoC.
The plan also includes the installation of the new base transceiver station in Pak-occupied Kashmir, as well as the use of local loop wireless phones in Indian territory.
“This plan has been accepted and is being implemented,” said the senior official.
Pakistan’s ISI is also pushing to increase the signal strength of the SCO mobile towers in PoK closest to Indian sites, such as Cham off Baramulla, Leepa off Sopore, Upper Neelam Valley and Athmuqam off Kupwara. and Hillan Meera in front of Srinagar to provide coverage through the LoC
A parallel SCO exercise, maintained by Pak’s army, is seeking to increase the transmission power of the television towers located in Lawat near Muzaffarabad, Upper Neelam and in Khuiratta to provide extended television coverage on J&K.
These efforts are a continuation of previous attempts by the OCS to install a small internet-based backhaul cellular system that could cover Kashmir cities some distance from the LoC, an anti-terrorism official said.
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