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Change Your Life! |
Mobile operators ready to withdraw incoming call charge |
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News |
April 19, 2000
Dhaka,
Apr 18 (UNB)- Mobile phone operators say they are ready to withdraw the
incoming call charge if the government imposes a time-based tariff on
calls from fixed phones to mobile phones. They
made this proposal at meeting with the Secretary of Post and
Telecommunication Ministry here on Monday. Representatives of all mobile
phone operators except BRTA attended the meeting. A
call from a T&T (Fixed Phone) phone cost the caller Tk 1.75 only while
a call from a mobile phone at least Tk 4 per minute. Again,
a call from a fixed phone to a mobile phone cost the recipient at a range
between Tk 2 to Tk 3 per minute while receiving a call from a mobile phone
does not involve any cost for the recipient. The
mobile operators told the meeting that the fixed phone to mobile phone and
mobile phone to fixed phone rates are almost equal in other countries that
use cellular system. According
to meeting sources, the operators also proposed that the government allow
Grameen Phone to sub-lease the railway optic fiber line that was leased
out for the use of Grameen mobile phone. Grameen
Phone representative told the meeting that a relaxation of the lease rule
would help other operators and corporate users to use the optic fiber line
to expand their network. Many
corporate users, including government, semi-government and Non-Government
Organisations (NGO’s) have proposed that Grameen sub-lease the railway
optic fiber lines for their use. The
operators also brought up their earlier 5-million-dollar joint investment
proposal for T&T’s capacity building. The
operators in the meeting put up the issue of how BTTB would repay the
money to be invested under the joint venture scheme. The proposed joint
investment scheme is a Built-Operate-Transfer (BOT) proposal. As
per the proposal, BTTB would pay back the investment with revenue earnings
to be increased as a result of the investment. The
joint investment would increase the capacity of BTTB for more
interconnecting telephone lines. Presently, because of scarcity of
telephone lines, the T&T is unable to provide more interconnecting
lines to the mobile operator resulting in restriction on expansion of
mobile phone facility. Sources
said the ministry is actively considering the joint venture proposal for
T&T’s capacity building.
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