Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has taken swift measures to ensure continuity of telecom services in Arunachal Pradesh following severe disruption of communication networks caused by heavy rainfall, cloudburst and landslides in parts of the State.

Recognizing the critical role of telecommunications during disasters, DoT immediately activated its emergency response mechanism and issued directions to all Telecom Service Providers for enabling Intra-Circle Roaming (ICR) in the 4 districts of Arunachal Pradesh - Keyi Panyor, Lower Subansiri, Upper Subansiri, and West Siang for an initial period of three days.

The affected areas witnessed extensive damage to telecom infrastructure following heavy rainfall and cloudburst incidents. According to reports received from the field, flash floods entered the NEEPCO Exchange at Posa, Yazali, rendering the exchange non-functional. Multiple landslides between Potin and Yazali also damaged approximately 12 kilometres of Optical Fibre Cable (OFC), adversely impacting communication services in the region. Continuous rainfall, landslides and disruption of commercial power supply have further hampered restoration efforts.

The damage to OFC infrastructure at Hoz affected connectivity in Sagalee, Lemmi, Kampu and Seppa areas. Restoration teams have been deployed and are working to restore connectivity through the Sopo–Hoz Maan route.

The activation of ICR will allow mobile subscribers of any participating telecom service provider to automatically access another available network in locations where their home network is temporarily unavailable. This facility will also be available to subscribers visiting these districts from other parts of the country. The measure is expected to significantly enhance communication availability for affected residents, disaster response teams, healthcare personnel, and government agencies engaged in relief and rescue operations.

The Department of Telecommunications is closely monitoring the situation through its field units and is coordinating with Telecom Service Providers for expeditious restoration of telecom services in the affected areas.   

What is ICR & how to use it:

Intra Circle Roaming (ICR) is a telecom arrangement where a mobile subscriber connects to another operator’s network within the same telecom circle (region). This allows users to access mobile services even if their own operator has no coverage in that specific area. It plays a critical role during natural disasters when mobile infrastructure is damaged.

During the time of disaster, if mobile infrastructure is damaged in a region, DoT issues instructions to Telecom Service Operators to implement ICR.

To ensure ICR works:

• Keep "Automatic Network Selection" enabled in your phone settings.
• If automatic connection fails;
  • Go to Settings > Mobile Networks > Network Operators
  • Manually select another available network

Follow DoT Handles for more: - X - https://x.com/DoT_India Insta-  https://www.instagram.com/department_of_telecom?igsh=MXUxbHFjd3llZTU0YQ== Fb - https://www.facebook.com/DoTIndia Youtube: https://youtube.com/@departmentoftelecom?si=DALnhYkt89U5jAaa

****

NJ/TB

(रिलीज़ आईडी: 2277997) आगंतुक पटल : 258