ABOVE: University of Kashmir
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Since early August, the Indian government has imposed a communication blackout on the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, slashing telephone, cellular, internet, and television connectivity. The move, a precautionary measure to mitigate any unrest following recent political changes in the region, has left residents cut off from the rest of the world—and scientists unable to do their work.
“Research has come to a standstill,” says one Kashmiri scientist, who declined to be named, fearing government retaliation.
Following a landslide victory in the general elections in India earlier this year, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) took the contentious step to dissolve Jammu and Kashmir (J&K)’s statehood by presidential ordinance on August 5, 2019. It was made up of three provinces: Jammu, which has a majority Hindu population; the Kashmir valley with a majority Muslim population; and Ladakh, inhabited mostly by Buddhists. Since ...
