ICT Minister Zunaid Ahmed Palak announced that mobile internet services will be restored from 3pm today (28 July). Additionally, all users will receive a 5GB internet bonus, valid for the next three days. The minister conveyed this information during a media briefing following a meeting between the Information and Communication Technology Division, Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC), and the Association of Mobile Telecom Operators of Bangladesh.
“It would take a couple more days to restore the internet if people were to be returned the remaining volume of their data packs which were lapsed during the internet blockout, that is why we decided to allot 5GB bonus for everyone,” said Minister Palak. He also expressed regret for the inconvenience caused by the internet service disruption.
Regarding social media platform restrictions, Palak stated that letters were sent to Facebook, TikTok, and other platforms on 28 July, with a response deadline of 30 July. The letter highlighted non-compliance with the country’s constitution and laws. Palak mentioned, “They have removed very few of the contents we asked them to delete. While extremists’ pages remain active, they have taken down 50 pages supported by the Awami League.”
Updates on social media restoration will be provided on 31 July. Palak cautioned against using VPNs, citing security risks.
During the briefing, Secretary of the Posts and Telecommunications Division Dr. Muhammad Mushfiqur Rahman, and BTRC Chairman Engineer Mohiuddin Ahmed were also present. The meeting included participants such as the National Telecommunication Monitoring Center’s DG, CEOs and CTOs of Mobile Financial Services like bKash, Nagad, Rocket, and Upay, as well as mobile operators Grameenphone, Robi, Banglalink, and Teletalk.
Minister Palak previously stated that the internet disruption was not intentional but was caused by the burning of three data centers and hundreds of kilometers of cables, resulting in a Tk500 crore loss for the telecom sector alone. He added that there were attacks at 17 locations in Dhaka Division, with Mohakhali’s data centers housing 18 IIG systems, which host 70% of ISP servers.
