The five-member probe team, under the leadership of Prakash Chandra Lohani, has been asked to submit its report within a month. [break]
The team will investigate the procedures followed to dole out 2G and 3G frequencies to telecom operators, and also dig out the facts regarding the abuse of VOIP service.
Constituent Assembly members Rabindra Adhikari, Raghubir Mahasheth, Narayan Prasad Dahal and Dhanraj Gurung are members in the committee.
Earlier, speaking at its meeting, CA member Rabindra Adhikari had said that occupying frequencies without making their full use was not justified. He said, “Telecom operators need to pay royalty for frequency even if they are not using it.” He questioned Nepal Telecom Authority (NTA)’s intention of simply collecting its share of revenue ignoring the government’s revenue.
Usha Gurung, other CA Member, opined that government should stop levying double tax on telecom services. “The provision of applying tax on service charges should be reviewed,” she added. She further said that United Telecom Limited (UTL)’s operation should be stopped without any delay for not paying royalties as per the commitment.
Lawmaker Dr Prakash Chandra Lohani said that there was a possibility of collecting Rs 7 billion from telecom operators in royalties, which is equivalent to one percent of total Gross Domestic Product of the country.
Lawmakers asked telecom operators to strictly follow the auction procedures instead of resorting to ‘beauty contest’. Beauty Contest is a mechanism in which licenses are sold for a fixed monetary value. NTA has provided frequency to all telecom operators on the ‘beauty contest basis’ whereas operation license has been provided by auctioning the amount of royalty.
However, NTA chairperson Bhesraj Kandel clarified that the decision was based on the suggestions provided by international consultants. He complained about Communication Ministry not approving NTA’s suggestion about refarming of frequency. NTA had requested the ministry to approve refarming about a year-and-half ago.
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