Failure to launch 10-second pulse
BTRC serves show-cause notices on GP, Banglalink
Asks them to refund additional charge to subscribers
The telecom regulator on Thursday served show-cause notices on Grameenphone and Banglalink for failing to launch 10-second pulse in each call and flat tariff rate by September 15 and asked them to refund the additional charges they took from the subscribers after the deadline passed.
In separate letters to the leading operator GP and second largest operator Banglalink, the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission said that the companies violated a BTRC directive for introducing the services by September 15.
In view of this, the GP and Banglalink authorities were asked to immediately launch the services, said the two BTRC letters posted on the regulator’s website.
The letters asked the GP and Banglalink to refund by October 23 the additional call charges they took from subscribers by not introducing the 10-second pulse and flat tariff for each pulse after September 15.
The time for refunding the money would not be extended, BTRC said.
BTRC also asked the companies to publish newspaper advertisements by September 27 expressing regret for the delay in launching the services and informing the subscribers about the refund.
In the show-cause letter to GP, BTRC said that the company had showed disrespect to the commission by publishing a newspaper advertisement on September 17 about a mobile package with 60-second pulse and variable call rates.
The regulator asked the GP to show cause by September 30 why it was still publishing such advertisements and taking additional call charges from the subscribers.
In another show-cause letter to Banglalink, the regulator asked the company to explain why it was not abiding by the BTRC directive by September 30.
Sources in the BTRC said that all four other operators had informed the commission that they complied with the BTRC directive within the set deadline.
‘The commission will now audit the operators to know their compliance status,’ said a source.
-With New Age input
