India ‘easing Kashmir restrictions in phased manner’

India’s government has said it is easing its lockdown in Kashmir in a “phased manner” after cutting phone and internet access for over a week after its decision to end the Himalayan region’s autonomy.

India cut communications and imposed a curfew in the sector of Kashmir it controls on August 4, a day before a surprise presidential decree to strip the Muslim-majority region of its special status, AFP said.

A spokesperson for India’s Ministry of Home Affairs tweeted on Tuesday that the restrictions in the Kashmir Valley “are being eased out in a phased manner.”

Normal communication in the more peaceful Jammu division of the region “has been restored after assessment by relevant local authorities,” the spokesperson added. There was no independent confirmation of the easing of restrictions.