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| Kathmandu, Wednesday March 12, 2003 Falgun 28, 2059. |
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Illegal use of satellite
phones rising
Govt’s failure to revise
policy prime factor
Post Report
KATHMANDU, March 11 : The failure of the
government to make timely revision in its decade-old ‘impractical and complicated
procedures’ for the import and use of satellite phone has fuelled its illegal use,
particularly, among the foreigners for adventurous visit to different districts.
According to tour operators, the use of
satellite phones, these days, have been common for the adventure tourists and most of
these satellite phones enter the kingdom simply bypassing the required legal procedures.
Concerned experts openly concede the wide-range
of illegal use of such phones inside the country, but blame the government for its failure
for making procedural changes in order to move along with the change in time.
"With the dwindling price and rapidly
squeezing size of such phones in the international market, the existing government’s
policy regarding the imports of such phones is irreverent and needs urgent and massive
policy-wise changes," says Suman Pandey, president of Trekking Agents Association of
Nepal.
He further informed that the present cost for a
set of handy satellite phone in the international market is less than US$ 1000, while the
existing government policy demands the deposit of US$ 3000 for using a satellite phone.
Not just the policy, but the micro-sized satellite phone handsets, which the concerned
officials find difficult to distinguish between cellular and satellite handsets, is
another factor that has give rise to illegal use of the satellite phones.
While two private companies are seeking approval
from the government to operate satellite phones in Nepal, the adventure tourism
entrepreneurs are demanding to remove the existing provision and introduce fixed
registration fee in order to facilitate the legal use of satellite phones in Nepal.
The deposit system was introduced when the
equipment of satellite telephone set used to come in carriages. But no longer. Therefore,
it has no significance at present. "If the government introduces a nominal
registration fee for the use of satellite phones, then it will not only raise revenue, but
also help in checking illegal use of the facility," Pandey adds.
According to an unofficial estimation, there are
some 100 satellite phones in the Nepali market. The price of satellite phone is almost Rs
80,000 in Nepal. The cost of making calls through satellite phones is much lower than the
charges of cellular mobile phone or the fixed phone.
Most of the satellite phones that are in use
inside Nepal are the products of Ericson Company and are operated with the pre-paid seam
card. The beauty of the satellite phone is that it has very god connectivity almost
worldwide and is not vulnerable to terrorist attacks in the context of Nepal.
It costs Rs 120 per minute to make a call to the
USA through the basic phone from Kathmandu while it cost just Rs 34 to make the same call
through the satellite phone. And due to rising competition among the satellite phone
operators, some of the satellite companies have waived incoming charge and the outgoing
call charges are also going down.
Despite adopting the open sky policy in the
early 90’s and opening the prospect of launching all types of possible communication
systems in the kingdom, the government is yet to licence the companies willing to operate
the cellular satellite phone.
Almost half a dozen of private companies are
asking the government to allow them operate cellular satellite phones in the kingdom. One
of the applicants, Asia Cellular Satellite Company has even stated that they will
introduce the service within two weeks of acquiring license.
The company has even appointed Satellite
Communication Private Limited as its local agent in Nepal. Talking to The Kathmandu Post,
some time back, Anil Chandra Adhikari, Managing Director of the Company, had stated that
their preparation is in the final stage and are awaiting the government’s approval
for launching cellular satellite phone.
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