BTRC unable to collect dues from BTCL despite drive
UNB
Despite sending repeated notices, the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) could not collect the dues from the Bangladesh Telecommu-nications Company Limited (BTCL), heaping up their outstanding payments, reports UNB.
According to sources at the BTRC, BTCL owes the commission Tk 1,768.75 crore as evaluation fee, licenses fees and revenue sharing arrears since October 2008.
BTRC Chairman Dr. Shahjahan Mahmood has recently sent a letter to State Minister for Posts and Telecommunication Tarana Halim in this regard seeking her intervention and direction to settle the matter.
Alongside separate notices, the BTRC also threatened to take legal action against BTCL if the company fails to pay the arrears, the letter says.
Although the BTRC took rigorous steps against other private license holders, the telecommunication authority is yet to take any tough step against state-owned BTCL to maintain the discipline in the telecommunication sector, the letter adds.
Earlier, the BTRC sent a letter to Posts and Telecommunication Ministry over the same issue on August 12, 2015.
Following the letter, the ministry directed BTCL to pay the arrears of the BTRC.
However, BTCL did not pay any heed to the ministrys directives which might tarnish the image of telecommunication sector, the letter mentions.
Secretary to Posts and Telecommuni-cations Division Faizur Rahman Chowdhury, who is also the Chairman of the Board of Directors of BTCL, said any the BTRC cannot easily take any legal action against BTCL as both are government bodies.
However, the BTRC might allow some time to BTCL to pay the arrears through several installments, he mentioned while talking to the news agency.
He also expressed the hope that the problem will be disposed of very soon.
