No web, no jobs: Kashmiris board the ‘Internet Express’

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Mon, 2020-01-13 04:11

SRINAGAR, India: Braving the snow and cold, Abrar Ahmad, 18, is one of thousands of Kashmiris who regularly spend hours journeying on a packed train just so that they can go online as the region grapples with the longest Internet blackout imposed by a democracy.
Stepping off the crammed train — dubbed the “Internet Express” by Indian Kashmiris — in the nearby town of Banihal, the passengers make a beeline for cafes where they pay up to 300 rupees ($4.20) for an hour’s broadband.