The government has earned Tk 3,061 crore from the telecommunication sector last fiscal year — a 29 percent rise from a year earlier.
Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) has recently handed over the money to the government.
Revenue sharing by the country’s mobile operators is the main source of the earning, said a BTRC official.
The telecom regulatory commission spent Tk 12 crore for its operations last year.
BTRC expects to earn more in the current fiscal year from the mobile operator’s licence renewal fees and spectrum fees that may be finalised this month.
The telecom ministry has recently sent a proposal to the finance ministry for the approval of four mobile operators’ airwave charges of Tk 7,563 crore.
“Revenue from the sector will increase remarkably if third generation (3G) auction takes place in this fiscal year,” said a BTRC official.
BTRC earned Tk 2,362 crore in fiscal 2009-10, compared to Tk 3,195 crore in fiscal 2008-09. It earned Tk 1,677 crore in 2007-08.
The sector’s revenue and the number of mobile subscribers started increasing in the caretaker regime in 2007. The sector made up Tk 565 crore and Tk 735 crore in 2006-07 and the previous year.
-With The Daily Star input
