A recent Right to Information (RTI) request has revealed that 91 official websites in Jammu & Kashmir are non-operational, blocking public access to essential services. The shutdown, which began in early May, is due to the failure of government departments to get mandatory security audits.
The Jammu & Kashmir e-Governance Agency (JaKeGA) confirmed that the websites were taken offline because they lacked ‘safe to host’ certificates. The agency stated that security audits are now being conducted by CERT-In-empanelled agencies and a third-party auditor. However, JaKeGA’s response to the RTI, filed by activist Syed Adil, dodged a question about whether alternative arrangements had been made, directing the query back to the individual departments.
Syed Adil criticized the government, stating the actual number of offline websites could be higher and that the lack of action reflects a “lack of seriousness.”
