From correspondents in Jammu, Jammu and Kashmir, 08:02 PM IST

Minister of State for Communications and Information Technology Sachin Pilot Wednesday ruled out the possibility of disconnecting pre-paid mobile phone connections in Jammu and Kashmir in the near future.

Pilot also said mobile towers would come up in the border areas along the line of control (LoC) and that the defence ministry would be consulted in this regard.

'There is no such proposal at the moment,' he told newsmen in Jammu Wednesday evening, a week after Home Minister P. Chidambaram hinted at the possibility of disconnecting pre-paid connections in the state because of security reasons.

Chidambaram had hinted that terrorists could use pre-paid cell phones to direct militancy.

While acknowledging that security was an important issue, Pilot said that at the same time, subscribers' interests have also to be taken into account.

'A balanced approach is needed,' he said.

(Staff Writer, © IANS)