Modi assures Kashmir situation to normalise in four months

NEW DELHI, Oct 13 (Reuters): Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday it would take four months for Jammu and Kashmir to return to normal after his government stripped the state of its special status in August and imposed harsh restrictions.

At a rally in the western state of Maharashtra, Modi said that his government had taken necessary steps to maintain security in Jammu and Kashmir, India's only Muslim-majority state that is also claimed by neighbouring Pakistan.

Alongside the withdrawal on August 05 of constitutional provisions that gave Jammu and Kashmir more autonomy than any other Indian state, Modi's government flooded the region with additional troops, and imposed curfew-like restrictions to keep a lid on protests.

Although many curbs, including those on movement have been eased, mobile telephone and internet connections in the Kashmir valley, home to around seven million people, remain cut off.