In a special meeting held today (28) to discuss communication services in areas affected by the disaster, telephone service providers have agreed to continue providing all phone connections without deactivation until tomorrow (29) to quickly restore communication facilities in the affected areas.

Furthermore, due to difficulties in topping up phones amid the disaster, the mobile companies agreed in the meeting with the government today to offer a limited period of free calls with restricted minutes and limited free data for a limited time to prepaid connections whose balance drops below Rs. 10, also until November 29.

This measure was taken considering the difficulties faced by the public due to the disaster caused by the 'Ditwah' cyclone affecting the island.

The agreement was reached during a discussion chaired by Deputy Minister of Digital Economy Eranga Weeraratne, and attended by Telecommunications Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka (TRCSL) Director General Bandula Herath, TRCSL officials, and Chief Executive Officers of mobile service providers.

The initiative aims to provide the necessary facilities for the affected public to maintain contact with their loved ones and essential services.

The process of restoring communication facilities continues under the supervision of the TRCSL.

The statement noted that the government and service providers are working together to fully restore all communication services as quickly as possible. During the discussion, short-term and long-term solutions for quickly repairing damaged communication infrastructure were extensively discussed.

Accordingly, the Minister provided instructions for the Department of Disaster Management and the tri-forces' Disaster Management Unit to collaborate in rapidly repairing the damaged communication infrastructure.

An agreement was also reached to hold discussions with the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) to expeditiously install backup power facilities at sites where connectivity has been interrupted due to power failures.