The Standing Committee of the National Assembly on Information Technologies asked the rapid finalization of its agreement with Starlink, the parliamentary secretary confirming that the service will be available in the country by June 2024.
The committee, chaired by Aminul Haq, discussed various key problems, including the PSDF of the Ministry of Information Technologies (TI) for the year 2024-25 and other important projects.
HAQ has asked officials to speed up the license process for Starlink, the satellite internet service provider belonging to Elon Musk, who has had discussions with Pakistan for almost two years.
The Starlink license process had previously blocked due to the absence of a regulatory authority, as noted by Barrister Gohar, a member of the committee. The Pakistani authorities soon aim to fill out the necessary documents, with the potential for Starlink to become operational by mid-2024.
Concerns have been raised on security, the member of the Ahmed Atiq Committee questioning the security of data confidentiality.
“Today, data security is an important problem, and I have doubts about Starlink’s ability to protect data from our citizens,” he said. However, the Committee has not raised significant objections to the Satellite Service provider.
The Committee also discussed the state of internet connectivity in the country, with the president of Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), Major Gen (R) Amir Azeem Bajwa, revealing that the PTA had contributed to RS1.7 government income over the past six years.
However, Bajwa deplored that the government had no investment in the telecommunications sector during this period. “High-speed internet connectivity comes from the installation of fiber cables. The government of Modi Indian has invested $ 13 billion in their telecommunications sector, when we have made no investment,” he said .
He urged the government to focus on accelerating the development of fiber optic infrastructure, depending on the example of India.
In response to questions concerning connectivity problems in rural areas, the PTA president explained that telecommunications companies hesitated to establish tricks in areas without commercial potential. “We are working to force companies to install tricks in these regions,” noted Bajwa.
Committee members expressed their frustration at the country’s inadequate internet services, some areas that are not even 40 kilometers outside Lahore. “Our children must travel from distant areas to cities for basic Internet access,” said member Ahmed Atiq.
In response, the President of the PTA promised that 2,000 TV turns would be installed in 2024, with new laps planned for distant regions such as Buner. “90% of talks with Starlink and the spatial regulatory body are completed, and the license process is now at its last stage,” he added.
The Committee has recommended that the government accelerate negotiations with Starlink to guarantee the deployment of services timely in Pakistan.
