On October 31 the Indian Home Ministry declared that there would be a ban on issuing new prepaid mobile SIM cards in Kashmir citing security woes. Home Minister P Chidambaram has now announced that the ban will stay and fresh prepaid recharge will be curbed too.

Reports say that residents who hold a three-month prepaid connection will be able to use it even after the ban, but only until their credit lasts. It was also reported that all prepaid connections will be stopped on January 31 next year.

We understand that the ban is in order to ensure some relief to the ever-challenging situation in Kashmir. However, this brings us to analyze how it can have adverse effects too. The new ban, as expected, has not gone down well with consumers and retailers. It has been reported that this ban has created inconveniences for about 3.8 million users and has left more than 20,000 people unemployed.

Apart from the commercial point of view, since Kashmir is a largely conservative region culturally, this ban will hit discreet mobile phone users.Prepaid connections have also been a lifeline for couples wanting to avoid detection from disapproving parents or prying elders.Changing over to a postpaid connection would mean receiving bills, providing proofs for verification.