Daily Star, 24 June 2003
A move to expand cellular phone networks to three hill districts has stalled following objections by the armed forces on security ground, sources concerned said.
Private cell phone operators planned expansion of their networks to the districts -- Khagrachhari, Bandarban and Rangamati -- after assessing viability.
But the army objected to the installation of a base at Khagrachhari by a private
cell phone company and told the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission
(BTRC) that cell phone operation will be "a serious concern for national
security", a BTRC official told The Daily Star on condition of anonymity.
Advised by the Prime Minister's Office, the BTRC convened a meeting of chief
executives of the cell phone operators and asked them not to expand networks
to the hill districts, sources said.
At least two operators including the GrameenPhone and the Telecom Malaysia International
Bangladesh (TMIB), the service provider of AKTEL, had plans to expand networks
to the hill districts.
"We got tremendous response for launching service in the hill districts,"
a senior official of an operator said.
Telecoms access could be raised promptly and at a cheaper price in the hill
districts by launching cell phone operation, he said.
The hill tracts, covering about 5,100 square miles, have a population of about
13 lakh.
Currently, weak signals of a particular cell phone network can be received at
Rangamati.
Army officials declined to comment on the issue.