Deputy Minister of Digital Economy, Eranga Weeraratne stated that the telephone and internet communication networks disrupted due to the recent disaster are expected to be fully restored by Thursday.
He noted that the Ministry of Digital Economy, the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission and all telecommunication service providers are working tirelessly to restore services.
Expressing his views further, the Deputy Minister stated:
“Due to landslides and flooding, provincial fibre connections were disrupted at 11 locations. With the direct intervention of the Ministry, we managed to restore services at 9 of these within 24 hours. At present, all provincial connections are operational, ensuring continuity of telecommunication services. In instances where intermediate points remain affected, routing is being managed through alternative fibre paths.
Over 4,000 main transmission towers became inactive due to power failures and fibre disruptions caused by floods and landslides. Of these, approximately 2,800 have now been restored. The remaining 949 towers are inactive primarily due to power outages and telecommunication providers are working closely with the relevant authorities to restore functionality as soon as possible.
The Tri-Forces are providing maximum assistance in reaching telecom towers quickly and providing necessary power support. Although the public initially faced difficulties connecting to mobile networks when the disaster occurred on November 28, we prepared the necessary technology to enable SMS capabilities. However, with the restoration of a significant portion of fibre connections by November 29, this was no longer required.
Currently, issues persist mainly in Nuwara Eliya, Badulla, Puttalam and Vavuniya districts. Among them, Nuwara Eliya and Kandy remain the most affected. By tomorrow morning, we expect more than 75% connectivity restored in Nuwara Eliya and Puttalam. Similarly, we aim to increase restoration in Kandy from the present 65% to around 70%.
Communication is essential for the public to stay informed and maintain contact with their loved ones. We have already resolved over 80% of the disruptions and we are confident that full restoration can be achieved by day after tomorrow.” (Newswire)