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Senate committee concerned by poor telecom services

* Committee urges PTA to ensure protection of consumer rights

Staff Report

ISLAMABAD: Expressing concern over the deteriorating standard and provision of poor services by a number of telecommunication companies, the Senate Standing Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunications has urged the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to ensure protection of consumer rights.

“Growth of the telecom sector is important, but consumer satisfaction is more important”, was the unanimous view of the committee, which met at Parliament House with Senator Muhammad Idrees Khan Safi in chair.

It also observed that telecom companies were making windfall profits but paying little attention to improving service quality, especially in the rural and remote areas of the country, severely inconveniencing citizens and consumers.

The committee directed the PTA to play its regulatory role effectively to address outstanding issues, especially those related to service quality. It also instructed that the SIM registration and verification process be carried out vigilantly to avoid any misuse.

The members were of the view that the Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL), ever since its privatisation, was unable to come up to the expectations of the people and that its service quality was unsatisfactory.

The committee observed that the provincial and regional job quota requirements enforced by the government were also not being complied with by the PTCL. It expressed concern over the massive lay-offs of trained employees, including engineers having more than 20 years of experience, and attributed this trend to falling standards of service.

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