The SIM scene

This refers to the editorial, ‘The SIM scene’ (January 12). There is no doubt that verification of prepaid SIMs should supersede all other issues as rightly emphasised in the editorial. To break the terrorists’ network, they must be deprived of all types of communication facilities – including cell phones, wireless network, satellite telephone sets, transport, fuel and reinforcement of arms and ammunition. According to media reports, nearly 100 million prepaid SIMs are to be verified for which the government has given three months to the telecom companies.
It is strange that the government is asking those companies to verify SIMs which were actually responsible for issuing SIM cards without proper verification in the first place. If SIM cards are to be verified, this task should be assigned to Nadra. It should open special SIM verification counters throughout the country at the already existing Nadra outlets. As a first step, all unverified SIM cards should be blocked pending verification by Nadra. It is estimated that 50 percent or more users of the blocked cards will never turn up for verification due to fake documentation. There will be some inconvenience to people, but the country’s security is more important than anything else.
Lt-Col (r) Mukhtar Ahmed Butt
Karachi