Surgical Strike on the Internet in Udaipur– is it valid?

“A stupid move by a lazy administration” is what the general feeling doing the rounds amidst corporate circles of Udaipur.  Those who are affected the most not only includes internet based businesses but also generic business where daily transactions related to banking, tourism, hotel bookings, online tendering, etc.

A few friends moved onto Rajsamand to fulfil their daily client support, an irony, as the incident that emanated in Rajsamand has put Udaipur under online curfew.

The administration has failed to realize time and again that it is not only those netizens who spend their time and energy on social sites like Twitter, WhatsApp or Facebook, who would be affected by this knee jerk reaction of the administration.  Gone are the days, when Internet was the domain of a few and today it is the businesses that have brought the “smart” (sic) city of Udaipur on the global map with their IT enabled services – both product and services, local tourist operators who have ensured that their guests visiting the city get sublime services that are feeling the heat of the situation.

This has happened before as well, and the ISPs of the city have discussed the matter with the administration – who claims having access to IT savvy staff.  All that was required to manage the situation was take some effort and manage social sites, or at the most terminate access to social networking sites on mobile networks.  This was an effort that they failed to make and have inflicted inconvenience to thousands of people both providers and receivers of services.

Funny, it is, banning Bulk SMS.  One could simple ask a user outside Udaipur to shoot instigating and provocative misguiding messages through Bulk SMS using a panel available with someone in Udaipur.  All it requires is access to the control panel, which of course is not hosted on a Udaipur server!  Databases are available by the millions.

Bytes from concerned readers:

When we are talking of digital India, Administration should not have banned Internet as this is taking heavy toll from businesses.

Instead of terminating internet services,  administration should have stopped social media broadcasts.  (Vishal Taparia, Suresh Rathi Securities Pvt. Ltd.)

 That it is okay to stop internet services is a hobgoblin of those who have only used internet to forward naughty messages. The fact this connectivity undergirds the life and work as have evolved today, escapes the unimaginative and the uninformed who populate this administration. They blithely glide over the inevitable pain caused to not just the exasperated locals, but to countless visitors who we asked to “padhao mharo des” and would cause them to confused, lost, embittered and ultimately disillusioned.

Internet is a utility now—an essentiality in the same league as water, air or electricity—and so even a temporary suspension of the same is an abdication of the duty which includes continuation of essential services. We talk about Udaipur as a digital destination—the same government organizes “DigiFest” here, invites start-ups, promotes schemes of building ITES clusters here—and then indulges in a positively medieval approach of restricting information. Misinformation and rumours are best handled with proactive information dissemination and smart use of social media, and there are plenty of examples which the city administration could have emulated. Stopping internet is a blunt instrument causing more harm by hampering key life activities like commerce, transport, and work. “Inconvenience” is not the right word—it is a greater violence that has been inflicted upon citizens.

A stupid move by a lazy administration is what it is. An act which is insensitive and cruel.

(IT Park, Madri Industrial Area, Udaipur)

Readers comments are welcome.