Telecommunication services have been shut down in Katsina State.
At least 13 Local Government Areas are affected by the development which may not be unconnected with the ongoing security operations against bandits in the North West.
The affected LGAs are Sabuwa, Faskari, Dandume, Batsari, Danmusa, Kankara, Jibia, Safana, Dutsin-Ma and Kurfi that are on the fringes of the Ruggu forest where most of the bandits are hiding.
The other three include Funtua, Bakori and Malumfashi.
This comes a few days after the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) denied plan to shut down telecom sites in Katsina.
Recall that the NCC had refuted a trending social media story claiming that the commission had ordered telecom service providers to shut down their sites in Katsina.
Also, the Katsina State government denied that NCC directed telecoms service providers to shut down their sites in Katsina.
Abdu Labaran Malumfashi, director general, media to Governor Aminu Bello Masari, said the directive was a cloned version of the one sent to Zamfara State, where there is a total shutdown of telecom sites.
In a statement, Malumfashi, therefore, advised that the trending news suggesting that a similar action could be effected in Katsina State should be disregarded.
“The statement did not emanate from the commission”, it concluded.
