For the sixth time this year, Internet has been shut down in a part of India. The latest on the list is Azamgarh, an eastern district in Uttar Pradesh, after communal tension broke out in the area, reports Times of India (TOI). This is probably the tenth time that a state government has shut down internet services in less than a year. In previous instances of such Internet blocks that were reported this year, mobile Internet was the only restricted medium. This is the first time in this year wherein broadband connectivity has also been shut down owing to riots. According to Azamgarh’s district magistrate Suhas L Y who spoke to TOI, social media sites “were being used actively to spread misleading reports”, so as a preventive measure, the district decided to put Internet services on hold. Internet shutdowns in India - May 17th 2016: Azamgarh (UP)/unknown length of time/Wireline and Mobile Internet (link) -April 18th 2016: Gujarat/3 days/Mobile Internet (link) -April 16th 2016: Jharkhand/unknown length of time/Mobile Internet (link) -April 14th 2016: Kashmir/1 day/Mobile Internet (link) -February 28th 2016: Gujarat/4 hours/Mobile Internet (link) -February 19th 2016: Haryana/more than 1 day/Mobile Internet and SMS (link) -December 20, 2015: Rajasthan/unknown/Mobile Internet (link) -September 25th 2015: Jammu & Kashmir/2 days/Wireline and Mobile Internet (link) -September 4th 2015: Manipur/2 days/Wireline and Mobile Internet (link) -September 2nd 2015: Gujarat/ 1 week/Mobile Internet (link) Note: in case we've missed something, please feel free to let us know. Previous internet shutdowns -Last month, mobile Internet services were shutdown in multiple districts of Gujarat due to demonstrations by the…
