Mobile and broadband internet users in Khagrachari and Rangamati districts on Saturday faced disruptions in using internet services for several hours in several phases.
Users from several areas of these two hill districts reported slow internet speed while using the services.
Most of the users complained about slow speed in the internet services and few said that they did not have any access to internet services.
Rahel Chakma, a resident of Dighinala in Khagrachari, said that people in his area had no access to internet services until 4.30pm on Saturday.
鈥楧isruptions in using internet services began on Friday. We were not able to use internet services for multiple hours at a time in several phases until Saturday afternoon,鈥� he said.
The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission in a press statement on Saturday said that mobile network and broadband internet services were disrupted in the districts as fiber cables were cut off and network sites were damaged during clashes on Thursday.
The BTRC said that a day-long clash in Dighinala on Thursday caused significant damages to local telecom infrastructure. 鈥楴o official ordered shut down of internet services.鈥�
A fire on Thursday damaged optical fiber cables belonging to the Summit Communications Limited and the Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited in Khagrachari. It led 16 mobile network towers of Robi in the district to go offline at about 4:00 pm on Thursday.
The statement said that 14 of the affected network towers were already restored and two were being repaired.
鈥楾eletalk has also been affected, with 29 out of its 72 towers going offline due to power cuts and technical issues,鈥� it said.
Broadband services in Khagrachhari and Rangamati mostly remained active, although some customers faced disruptions due to damaged cables and frequent power cuts, the statement claimed.
It said that efforts were going on to restore the services completely as soon as possible.
At least 200 houses and business establishments, largely belonging to Buddhist ethnic minorities, were burned in an arson attack in Dighinala upazila of Khagrachhari on Thursday afternoon over the mob lynching of a Bengali youth the day before.
The police said that Mamun, the victim of the mob lynching, was accused in several criminal cases and was beaten to death reportedly for stealing a motorcycle.
The streets of Rangamati town turned into battlefields on Friday morning as clashes broke out after ethnic minorities had brought out a procession in the town protesting at Thursday鈥檚 violence in Khagrachhari.
Ethnic minorities were busy defending their houses against the attacks by Bengalis, witnesses said.
鈥楾he situation is created in a planned way and being given a communal colour,鈥� said Rani Yan Yan, adviser to the Chakma Circle chief.
Ethnic minorities recently placed demands to the interim government to fully implement the CHT accord, ensure their land rights and end the army rule in the region.
The Inter-Service Public Relations in a statement said that the violence in Khagrachhari was triggered by an attack of the main faction of the United People鈥檚 Democratic Front on the protest rally brought out over the death of Mamun on Thursday.