The deadline to register cellular phones with Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) stands expired today. All the subscribers who have successfully registered their cell phones with their International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) numbers will be able to use them whereas those who haven’t done that will have their phones blocked. The said measure has reportedly been taken to discourage smuggling of cell phones and restricting use of phones with fake IMEI numbers, quality specifications below the standards set by PTA.

A similar announcement was made in the past and this deadline was extended on the insistence of the Senate Committee on Information Technology. In October, the committee directed PTA to postpone the implementation of cell phone registration system for being too difficult for people to understand and comply with.

The mechanism is dependent on an IMEI, which is a unique 15-digit number that identifies different mobile devices on mobile networks. PTA software will use this IMEI number of a phone to verify whether it is compliant, duty paid, according to approved standards and genuine or not. As per the details shared by PTA, the phones that are not compliant but registered with PTA will continue to function but only against the cell numbers of the existing users. This means these phones will not be transferable. Selling them to some other person will not be possible.

There is a general perception that most people are still unable to understand the process and therefore refraining from doing what they are expected to. But on the other hand, PTA sources claim it is a very simple process under which the cell phone owners are required to send their phones’ IMEI numbers at a number 8484. This number will be checked by the Device Identification, Registration and Blocking System’s (DIRBS) of PTA and the user will receive a message with certain instructions. The IMEI of the phone can be retrieved from its settings folder or via an sms by dialing *#06#.

Fouad Bajwa, an expert on digital security, says there shall be no apprehensions about this move as it is aimed at stopping smuggling and counterfeiting. If a person sells smuggled phone he earns far bigger margin than those who have imported phones through legal process and paid applicable duties on them. Secondly, the seller of smuggled phones has a larger cushion to offer discount to customers and put his rivals at a disadvantageous position. He believes it is time to employ digital and automated systems to detect smuggling and other violations of rules, and replace the conventional manual systems that are not delivering.

Bajwa explains that the users who will get the message that their phones are compliant will have nothing to worry about and continue using their sets. Whereas those whose phones are not compliant shall insert the sims they are using in their phones and make calls as per instruction in order to pair their phones with these numbers. One cell phone can be paired with maximum five numbers. The purpose of pairing, he says, is that these cell phones shall work only with these numbers and none others.

The pairing of cell phones and sims is important also for the reason that there are thousands of sets with same IMEIs. This is illegal and called cloning. Due to this reasons, a large number of stolen cell phones could not be blocked because putting one number would lead to blockage of thousands of numbers, says Babar Ali, a deputy superintendant of police based in Lahore. He says as such phones will now be paired with the sims their owners are using and it will be possible to block them in case of theft.

Interestingly, this announcement has created an opportunity for some who are charging amounts of money for registering people’s devices. Abdul Hameed, a technician in Kot Lakhpat Area in Lahore, shares it with TNS that some mobile phone service shops are charging around Rs50 to register devices with PTA. A large number of illiterate subscribers seek their advice as they cannot either use online option to verify the status of their cell phones or follow the instruction given to them.

While users in Pakistan have started complying with these instructions, the international passengers who bring in cell phones from abroad and the overseas Pakistanis who travel back home and hand-carry goods including mobile phones stand confused. They were not clear what would happens if they carried cell phones in hand baggage.

To clear things, Hammad Azhar, the Minister of State for Revenue, has said that Pakistani expatriates will be allowed to bring in only one mobile phone to the country, per year, free of customs duty as per the new personal baggage rules. A maximum of five phones can be brought under the new regulations in a year. However, customs duty will have to be paid on the extra four handsets to require service in Pakistan beyond 30 days. This means all those incoming passengers with temporary stay plans will be allowed to use their phones without paying duty but only for 30 days.

These orders have got response from overseas Pakistanis who demand this limit shall be increased because many overseas Pakistanis come home for two to three months. There are others who question the logic of paying another tax on the mobile phones they have bought from abroad after paying applicable taxes there.

Last but not the least, the sellers of mobile phones feel harmed by this move and have sought an extension in deadline to get their stocks sold off. Tahir Ali, a sales executive at a wholesale mobile shop at Hall Road, tells TNS that many sets with non-compliant IMEIs lying in their showcases and racks will become useless as these could not be paired with any sims. He is hopeful that the deadline will be extended because a huge number of people have not yet registered their phones and will lose connectivity. "They will definitely push the government to give them another chance."

The traders who import phones legally do not need to worry because the list of IMEIs of all the duty-paid sets is provided to the customs authorities for entry in their system.

shahzada.irfan@gmail.com.