New Delhi, Dec.17: Only 16 out of 79 district headquarters in the Northeast are now without cellular phone service.

This was revealed by the minister of communication and information technology, Dayanidhi Maran, in Rajya Sabha today. He promised that even the remaining ones would be provided with cellular telephone services soon.

?Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has planned to provide cellular mobile service in all the remaining 16 district headquarters,? he said. Maran, however, added that two district headquarters, Kailashahar in Tripura and Baghmara in Meghalaya, were not part of this plan.