Cites higher financial costs due to inflation, rising fuel prices and devaluation of the rupee as the main reason.
KARACHI:
The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority has termed the increase in retail tariffs of mobile phone companies between 2021 and 2024 as justified, citing higher financial costs due to inflation, increase in fuel prices and devaluation of the rupee.
“From March 2021 to May 2024, fuel prices increased by 158 percent, inflation increased by 83 percent, while the rupee depreciated against the dollar by 44 percent. Additionally, the policy rate increased by 214 percent, increasing the financial cost of operators,” the PTA said in an official response to an adjournment motion filed by ruling PPP MP Muhammad Asif, in the Sindh Assembly.
The lawmaker complained in his motion that telecom companies operating in the country have not only increased the cost of mobile plans but their network performance in Karachi and other parts of Sindh has declined.
The Sindh Assembly secretariat had sent the issue to the PTA for comments.
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In their written response, the PTA authorities said that the PTA was monitoring tariffs and taking measures to improve the network performance of the telecom service. However, the PTA only regulates fares for “dominant operators” (SMP). Non-PSM operators are free to set their rates based on their business decisions, the PTA said, adding that Jazz and Telenor have been declared PSM operators by the PTA.
According to PTA officials, several measures are being taken to improve telecommunications services, including conducting surveys on the quality of cities, highways and railways. In addition, the increase in the number of BTS (towers) is also carried out every year as part of the network expansion.
At present, 245 towers are available in Punjab, 105 in Sindh, 65 in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, 30 in Balochistan and 10 in Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan, he adds.
“However, some areas still face network availability issues, primarily due to prolonged power outages, limited access to commercial electricity, delays in securing rights of way, and incidents of theft or vandalism,” authorities said.
They added that limited access to commercial electricity impacted at least 17 percent of BTS sites.
According to PTA authorities, the quality of service has improved thanks to the continuous efforts of operators. Adequate voice and data services are now available along major highways, including the M-9. However, the Hyderabad-Sukkur section is still under construction, so network deployment and subsequent surveys will be carried out once it becomes operational.
