- Thousands of villagers in Odisha’s Malkangiri district are set to enjoy uninterrupted cellular service for the first time in their lives.
- Due to threats from left wing extremists, mobile towers could not be installed until now in Swabhiman Anchal (formerly known as Cut-off area).
- Located along the Odisha-Andhra Pradesh border, Swabhiman Anchal comprises 151 villages.
- The area, surrounded by water on three sides and by inhospitable terrain on another, became less remote after the construction of Gurupriya Bridge, which connected the zone with the rest of the State in 2018.
- Odisha accounts for the highest number of villages that do not have mobile phone services in India.
- Over the recent years, since the deployment of the Border Security Force in 2010, the region has been witnessing a turnaround with intensified counter Maoist operations by BSF and State Police.
- Malkangiri has been one of the most violence-hit districts in the country with as many as 332 Maoist incidents recorded in 12 years between 2008 and 2020.
