Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan have lived a particular kind of neglect for most of Pakistan’s modern telecom history. As cities such as Lahore and Karachi progressed with 3G, 4G, and even 5G, people in Skardu, Muzaffarabad, and Hunza used 2G networks and understood that their remoteness was not merely a simple geographical coincidence. It was a product of decades of policy delay.
That is now changing. The Special Communications Organization, established in 1976 specifically to serve AJK and GB, is executing the most ambitious connectivity push these regions have seen.
SCO is installing 47 new 4G towers, of which 11 are already complete, while 53 out of 87 existing sites have been upgraded. Officials project full completion by December 2026. Simultaneously, SCO recently upgraded Soq Valley in GB directly from an outdated 2G system to high-speed 4G, a transition the organization described as a massive step toward a digital revolution in the region.
The more notable one is 5G. In a pilot project to enhance high-speed internet access in mountainous regions, SCO is deploying seven new 5G base transceiver station towers in five cities, such as Muzaffarabad, Gilgit, Mirpur, Skardu, and Hunza. The project is in its last phase with a projected completion date of June 2026, the first 5G rollout in these areas, even before the technology goes national. AJK and GB getting 5G before it goes national is a strategic message of where state investment is currently being flowed.
The Funding Behind It
SCO has sought Rs 2.67 billion under PSDP 2026-27 for four projects, including 32 new cellular sites in tourist destinations and unserved areas at a cost of Rs 2.5 billion, hybrid power solutions on towers, and a convergent billing system. That last item matters more than it sounds. The number of subscribers at SCO has increased by approximately 5,000 to more than 2.2 million, yet the current billing system is outdated and slow, which delays the revenue collection process. The new system will consolidate billing for mobile, landline, cloud, and fiber internet services and serve four million customers.
The National Assembly Standing Committee on IT has also ordered all mobile towers in GB and AJK to be switched to solar power so that they can have continuous connectivity. In a region where fuel logistics are expensive and roads regularly close in winter, solar conversion is an operational necessity, not optics.
The stakes extend beyond mobile internet. SCO manages more than 4,800 kilometers of optical fiber in AJK and GB and has been assigned the 820-kilometer Pakistan-China Fiber Optic Project, which provides Pakistan with a fifth path to carry telecom traffic. That road passes through a region that borders on China, India, and Afghanistan. It is strategic infrastructure, not just a development project.
According to the chairman of the National Assembly Standing Committee on IT, the residents of GB have a right to enjoy broadband and mobile network services that are equal to those of the four provinces of Pakistan. That framing is important. Connectivity in AJK and GB is not charity. It is an obligation. The people of these regions have waited long enough.
