Munish Sood
Mandi
In a major development for the remote and strategically important Shikari Mata region of Himachal Pradesh, a Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) 4G tower was made operational on Tuesday at Dayolana village under the Government of India’s Digital Bharat Nidhi scheme.
The move is expected to significantly improve communication facilities in the high-altitude Shikari Mata area of Mandi district, which had remained without mobile network coverage from any telecom operator for years despite being a prominent religious and trekking destination.
The absence of mobile connectivity in the region had repeatedly emerged as a serious concern for pilgrims, local residents, tourists and rescue agencies. District authorities had on several occasions flagged the area as highly sensitive from the perspective of disaster response and public safety.
The issue had drawn widespread attention in 2017 when two students lost their lives near the snow-covered Shikari Devi temple after reportedly getting trapped in extreme weather conditions during a trek. Rescue operations involving large search teams and aerial support were launched, but communication challenges in the remote terrain complicated coordination efforts. Reports at the time indicated that the students could not be contacted after entering the region.
Over the years, several rescue and emergency operations in the Shikari Mata belt have highlighted the urgent need for reliable telecom infrastructure in the area. Dense forests, unpredictable weather conditions and the absence of network coverage often created difficulties for both visitors and rescue personnel during emergencies.
Officials said the newly commissioned BSNL 4G tower is expected to provide much-needed communication access to residents and devotees visiting the temple region. Apart from improving public safety, the connectivity is also likely to strengthen tourism management, disaster response coordination and access to digital services in the remote mountainous belt.
The Digital Bharat Nidhi initiative of the Government of India aims to bridge the digital divide by extending telecom and internet connectivity to remote and underserved regions across the country, particularly in hilly and border areas. The operationalisation of the Shikari Mata tower is being viewed as an important step towards integrating remote Himalayan regions with the country’s expanding digital infrastructure.
