ICT State Minister Palak for banning use of unregistered phone sets

The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) has been asked to stop usage of unregistered mobile handsets.

Speaking at a meeting today (16 January), Posts, Telecommunication, and ICT State Minister Zunaid Ahmed Palak said the move would help protect the country's nascent smartphone assembling industry. 

It would also attract investments there for job creation and better law enforcement, he said at the meeting with the telecom regulator and stakeholders.

The government in 2021 embarked on stopping illegal imports of handsets that had been growing in numbers.

The BTRC then set up the National Equipment Identity Register (NEIR), which telecom operators can use to block usage of mobile handsets.

The NEIR automatically registers the IMEI numbers of all the legal handsets, being locally-assembled or legally-imported.

Considering some practical problems, however, the government opted out of the decision later.

According to industry insiders, around three crore handsets being used in the country are either illegally-imported – depriving the government of the duties – or they remain unregistered because travellers and expatriate Bangladeshis bring them from other countries.

A BTRC official, seeking anonymity, told The Business Standard that registering one's unregistered existing phone with the NEIR database within a stipulated time might be an option ultimately, while the move would certainly block further illegal imports of mobile phones.

Illegal imports hurt local industry as it causes their sales drop.

Due to the appreciating dollar and high inflation, 4G and 5G smartphone production in the country dropped by a third to 68.48 lakh in 2023, while legal import of the same dropped by nearly 30% to less than 43,000, according to the BTRC.

Phone manufacturers also blame the illegal imports of used flagship smartphones from abroad that gained popularity among the inflation-hit middle class people.

According to the NEIR user guide, the government allows travellers or expatriates to bring phone sets from abroad and use them locally by registering them online.

People who get such phones as a gift, too, can register their sets online, showing the valid purchase receipt or the passport, visa.