Body to suggest steps to stop grey trafficking in telecom sector
ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari announced on Monday formation of a committee to suggest measures to stop grey trafficking in the telecom sector causing losses to the economy and to implement the latest 3G technology in the country.
The practice of making long distance calls through illegal means from the country is known as grey trafficking.
The president took the decision after a briefing on upgradation of the telecom sector was given to him at the Aiwan-i-Sadr.
According to an official handout, Mr Zardari wants Finance Minister Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, Water and Power Minister Syed Naveed Qamar and representatives from the private sector on the committee which will go through proposals prepared by the Ministry of Information Technology and submit its recommendations to the government.
IT and Telecom Secretary Saeed Ahmed Khan informed the meeting that about 40 per cent of international minutes terminated in Pakistan were coming into the country through grey channels, causing significant revenue losses to the telecom sector.
The existing mobile phone services are based on the second generation technology and the country is lagging behind in broadband service. Wireless broadband solutions with latest technology, especially 3G (third generation), could fill this gap, the meeting was told.
Over 85 per cent operators in the world have deployed the 3G technology because of its better coverage and fast data transfer abilities. The president ordered that another meeting to discuss the issue in details be convened soon.
Source: Dawn
Date:8/23/2011
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