ISLAMABAD: A parliamentary committee on Thursday asked mobile network operators to stop pressuring their franchises to sell the maximum number of SIM cards to meet targets and directed the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to ensure the directive is carried out.

“We have learnt that fear of losing contracts with cellular operators, franchises are giving free SIMs to customers to sell the maximum number of connections. This leaves room for the misuse of SIMs, especially in criminal cases, including terrorism,” Senate Standing Committee on IT chairman Senator Shahi Syed said.

Senator Rehman Malik shared the committee chairman’s sentiments, and asked the PTA to penalise mobile network operators that do not check free connections given away by their franchises.

“Franchises are under tremendous pressure from cellular mobile operators to sell the maximum number of SIM cards or fear termination of their contract agreements on the pretext of failure to achieve sales targets,” Senator Malik said.

Standing committee directs PTA to ensure companies stop pressuring franchises to meet sales targets

The committee met to take up the issue of free SIM cards, as well as complaints that cellular companies were charging their subscribers for 60 seconds while providing 45 seconds of airtime.

PTA Member Enforcement Abdul Samad informed the committee that after 2016, the government had directed cellular companies to stop giving away SIM cards for free, and charge at least Rs200 for each SIM card.

“Violations of these directions have been reported every now and then. However, violations have been brought to the notice of all four cellular operators. Operators have been directed that rules are not violated,” he said.

The meeting was informed that telecommunications companies can be fined up to Rs350 million for rule violations, and no operator has been fined since 2016.

However, State Minister for IT and Telecommunication Anusha Rehman cautioned the senators from interfering in cellular companies’ commercial matters.

“It will not be advisable to interfere in commercial operations of cellular operators that are trying to expand their businesses. Cellular operators can enter into contracts in the private sector to enhance their businesses and interfering will affect their growth,” she told the committee.

She said her ministry only interacted with the PTA on policy matters, and emphasised that a cellular company engaging with franchises was not a policy or regulatory matter.

However, most committee members said the companies should nonetheless be monitored to safeguard the interests of local franchises and customers.

While discussing the complaints of overcharging by cellular companies, Senator Malik said operators charged customers for the full minute even when phone calls were terminated after 20 or 25 seconds.

He said companies should only charge subscribers for the minutes consumed.

Mr Samad from the PTI attempted to pacify the senators, saying there had been no complaints of operators excessively charging their subscribers.

“We have our own tools and systems in place to check the exact time calls are terminated and the charges deducted against the airtime. We conduct random tests without the knowledge of the operators,” he said.

Published in Dawn, November 24th, 2017