Broadband internet partially restored in Bangladesh after violent unrest: Reports

Dhaka, Jul 24 (PTI) Broadband internet services were partially restored in Bangladesh after five days of countrywide blackout amid clashes between security personnel and protesters demanding reforms to government job quotas that reportedly killed more than 100 people, media reports said on Wednesday.

The broadband connections were being restored on a limited scale late on Tuesday, the reports said.

The state minister for post, telecommunication and information technology, Zunaid Ahmed Palak, described the phased internet restoration as a “trial run”, The Dhaka Tribune newspaper reported.

It would prioritise banking, commercial sectors, technology firms, exporters, outsourcing providers and media outlets, he said, adding that full internet service would soon be reinstated across the country.

Internet Service Providers Association of Bangladesh (ISPAB) President Md Emdadul Hoque said that around 40 per cent of broadband connections across the country have been restored, and most of the lines will be connected today.

“We are working tirelessly to restore all connections. I hope (the) majority of the people will get the internet soon,” he was quoted as saying by the Daily Star newspaper.

Bangladesh witnessed violent clashes between the police and mostly student protesters demanding an end to a controversial quota system that reserved 30 per cent of government jobs for relatives of veterans who fought in Bangladesh’s War of Independence in 1971.

The internet and mobile services were snapped following the countrywide violence.

Mobile internet was still down in the country, the bdnews24 news portal reported

On Monday, the apex court slashed the veterans’ quota to just 5 per cent.

Thus, 93 per cent of civil service jobs will be merit-based while the remaining 2 per cent reserved for members of ethnic minorities, transgender and physically challenged people.

The violence has reportedly killed more than 100 people, according to local newspapers. However, there are no official figures available for deaths.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday defended her decision to enforce a curfew with a shoot-on-sight order following the clashes, asserting that tough measures were taken to ensure the security of the lives and properties of the people.