The National Assembly’s Standing Committee on IT and Telecommunications has expressed concern over deteriorating mobile and internet services and called for stronger efforts to improve service quality and attract Apple to Pakistan’s manufacturing sector.
During a committee meeting, Chairman Aminul Haque criticised the quality of mobile services, saying subscribers often had to dial the same number multiple times before a call could connect.
“The quality of mobile and internet services is deteriorating day by day after the spectrum auction instead of any improvement,” the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) lawmaker said.
The committee questioned the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) over penalties imposed on telecom companies during the past six months. Haque noted that while the regulator had issued show-cause notices and warning letters, the fines imposed on operators appeared insufficient.
Members Zulfiqar Ali Bhatti, Ahmad Ateeq Anwar, Sadiq Memon and Dr Mahesh Kumar said the underlying causes of poor mobile services needed to be addressed instead of repeatedly receiving assurances from the PTA.
Committee member Shazia Fareed also highlighted the issue, saying she had experienced almost no mobile signals during her stay at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) in Islamabad.
The committee directed the PTA to fulfil its regulatory responsibilities and inform parliament if any obstacles were preventing it from taking action. Members also proposed summoning telecom operators to obtain explanations directly.
PTA officials told the committee that the authority continuously monitored mobile and internet services and conducted surveys in different cities to assess service quality.
They said telecom operators were given 30 days to improve their networks and service quality, while the PTA had the authority to impose fines of up to Rs350 million.
Officials added that telecom companies frequently obtained court stay orders against penalties, with several cases still pending before the courts. They said the Telecom Tribunal was operational, although its decisions had also been challenged in courts.
The PTA maintained that service quality had improved following the launch of 5G and that clear rollout targets had been set for telecom operators. A PTA member said the number of 5G sites in Karachi had increased to 279.
IT Secretary Zarar Hasham Khan told the committee that telecom companies had installed equipment meeting international standards. He said the government had prioritised improving service quality over revenue generation during the 5G spectrum auction held in March.
The committee decided to summon telecom operators at its next meeting and directed the PTA to submit details of fines imposed on companies and the amounts recovered.
The committee also discussed efforts to attract Apple to Pakistan, with Haque questioning why the US technology company had not entered the country when other major international smartphone manufacturers were already operating locally.
Engineering Development Board (EDB) Chief Executive Officer Hammad Mansoor told the committee that negotiations were underway to bring Apple into Pakistan.
He said efforts were also being made to arrange a meeting between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Apple CEO John Ternus during the premier’s upcoming visit to the United States.
Mansoor said an Apple store had already been established in Pakistan and expressed optimism that the company would eventually enter the country’s manufacturing sector.
The EDB chief said 37 companies were currently manufacturing mobile phones in Pakistan and that more than 35 million devices had been produced locally.
The committee was informed that all major smartphone manufacturers were producing phones in Pakistan, with Apple being the notable exception.
Haque directed the IT ministry and PTA to provide detailed information at the next meeting and continue efforts to facilitate Apple’s entry into Pakistan.
The committee also reviewed the issue of taxes on imported mobile phones and a proposal to allow consumers to pay the levies in instalments.
A PTA member clarified that the authority had no role in determining mobile phone taxes or establishing an instalment mechanism, saying such matters fell under the jurisdiction of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).
Committee member Syed Ali Qasim Gilani said he had raised the issue of allowing consumers to pay mobile phone taxes in instalments. He said the FBR had told him that such a mechanism was available through the PTA, questioning how the authority could introduce the facility when it did not collect the tax.
The IT secretary said he was not aware of the proposed instalment mechanism and assured the committee that he would discuss the matter with the PTA chairman before briefing members.
The committee sought a detailed briefing on the issue at its next meeting.
“Our vision should be smartphones for all,” Haque said, noting that good-quality smartphones were available in Pakistan for around Rs60,000.
The committee also discussed electricity supply to telecom infrastructure and the sector’s demand for industrial electricity tariffs.
IT Ministry official and committee member Muhammad Jahanzeb said the ministry had asked the Power Division to ensure uninterrupted electricity supplies to telecom towers.
He pointed out that the telecom sector had been declared an industry in 2004, while the 2021 Finance Act had also recognised telecommunications as an industry.
The ministry said power outages caused by load-shedding were disrupting telecom services and affecting freelancers and a large segment of the population.
However, Jahanzeb said the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) had declined to extend industrial tariffs to the telecom sector.
“Twenty-two years have passed since 2004, but a government institution is still not accepting it,” PPP lawmaker Sadiq Memon remarked.
The IT secretary said the government had attempted to protect telecom towers from load-shedding, but the Power Division had stated that dedicated feeders for telecom towers could not be provided.
Haque maintained that the telecom sector should be granted full industrial status and announced that Nepra would be summoned before the committee.
The committee decided to summon Nepra and Power Division officials to discuss the issue and directed the IT ministry to complete the required documentation concerning the sector’s industrial status and tariff arrangements.
