Students in Gilgit Baltistan are protesting against poor internet quality in the region

Students residing in the region of Gilgit Baltistan are the ones who are suffering the most these days. The proper internet supply in the region has been burdensome for the students as they have to walk for miles to receive stable internet signals thus making it difficult for them to be a part of the online classes.

To combat the connectivity issues, students from all over Pakistan have been raising their voices against the feeble internet connectivity on Twitter with a hashtag “Internet4Gilgitbaltistan. On the platform, many students have emerged with their internet linked issues and how they have to travel for miles to participate in the online classes.

Students are asking profusely to be given semester break until the internet situation gets sorted out in the region. They have contacted the administration to get a break as an alternative to the low quality of education through online means. Many pupils pointed out that education through an online platform is useless as it does not offer any productivity or motivation. Each day, Twitter has a trending hashtag regarding online education that has been observed globally because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A tweet from the Digital Rights Foundation stated:

“Students across Pakistan have been protesting against the shift to online classrooms rightly pointing out that as students from less urban centers move back home, they either lack access to high-speed internet or no internet at all.”

Another user tweeted:

“A sheer example of an internet crisis in Gilgit-Baltistan where students have to hike up to the mountain tops to just attend their online classes. If it isn’t oppression I don’t know what will.”