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Thursday December 26, 2024

PTA to impose new fee on local cellphones

Purpose is to increase the revenue of the telecom authority

By Zubair Kasuri
May 17, 2024
A view of Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) building in Islamabad. — AFP/File
A view of Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) building in Islamabad. — AFP/File

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Telecom Authority (PTA) has decided to impose a new fee on all models of cellphones being manufactured in the country, it has been learnt reliably.

The Authority held a detailed meeting with the mobile phone manufacturers during which the representatives of mobile phone manufacturing companies were told that Rs120 would be charged for each cellphone manufactured in Pakistan in terms of type approval and COC letter, sources said. The purpose is to increase the revenue of the telecom authority.

According to the senior officials of mobile phone manufacturers association over 30 lakh mobile phones were being made in Pakistan at the moment, and charging Rs120 per cellphone by the PTA was an injustice to the people, the sources said.