Post and Telecommunications and Information Technology Minister Mustafa Jabbar on Tuesday told Parliament that state-owned mobile phone operator Teletalk Bangladesh Limited owes some Tk 1694.73 crore to the government. The minister said this replying to a question from Awami League lawmaker AKM Sarwar Jahan. The question-answer session was tabled in the House after the day’s sitting began with Speaker Dr Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury in the chair. Of the total outstanding amount, Tk 1585.13 crore is for 3G spectrum assignment fee, while Tk 27.15 crore for spectrum charge, Tk 33.79 crore for revenue share and Tk 48.66 crore for SOF (Service Order Form), said Mustafa Jabbar. He said Citycell has an outstanding payment of Tk 128.698 crore with the government.  

Bijoy keyboard software installation in all android phones not mandatory, said Posts and Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar on Wednesday. Amid criticism over the matter, the minister clarified this while talking to reporters on the 2nd day of Deputy Commissioners Conference 2023 at the Osmani Memorial Auditorium in the capital. Read more: 'Environment for 5G rollout already in place': Mustafa Jabbar “I have an explanation that Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) has used a word – ‘Mandatory’. This term is misleading,” said the minister. One can install, uninstall, remove and reinstall any software on any Android phone. So there is no need to use the word ‘mandatory’, he  said. Jabbar said, “What we said that the mobile phone set manufacturers or importers will provide software to facilitate Bangla writing. Whether a user uses the software or not is entirely up to him/her.” Regarding the internet service, he said the 4G service has been provided in more than 98 percent area of the country. “Now we are working with 5G which is 10 times more powerful than 4G.” Read more: Mustafa Jabbar wants fixed rate for internet packages across operators Besides, there are more than 10 crore mobile internet subscribers and some fixed internet subscribers too, he said. “We should give more importance to mobile internet.” “But we are not able to install towers for network in different parts of the country. Some people spread propaganda that towers are emitting radiation. We have tested and found that these are propaganda. People should not obstruct the towers installation work.”

Digital Bangladesh is a resounding success and Nagad, a mobile financial service of Bangladesh Postal Department, is a vivid example of that success, Posts and Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar has said. “Bangladesh is an agriculture-dependent country, but many are now envious of its rapid technological development. One of the major positive outcomes of digitalisation is that we have almost moved towards a cashless society,” the minister told journalists at a programme marking Digital Bangladesh Day-2022 in Daak Bhaban, on Monday.  Read more: FY22: Nagad 3rd highest VAT-paying company in service category, says NBR “We can now make all kinds of financial transactions, including cash-out and cash-in and shopping, through mobile financial services,” Jabbar said, adding that Nagad is playing a big role in this regard. Starting off in 2019, Nagad has now become one of the most popular MFS in the country, he noted. Bangladesh Posts and Telecommunications Division organised a “Digital Postal Service Exhibition” to celebrate Digital Bangladesh Day on Tuesday. It also held a meeting with Posts and Telecommunications Secretary Md Khalilur Rahman in the chair. Presenting a keynote, Prof Dr Mohammad Mahfuzul Islam, vice-chancellor of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Digital University, said, “The most digitalisation has happened in Bangladesh’s financial sector. Mobile financial service providers in particular have revolutionised this field. We can mention the name of Nagad as an example.” Read more: Nagad wins Mastercard Excellence Award 2022 in two categories Posts and Telecommunications Secretary Md Khalilur Rahman shared his experience about Digital Bangladesh with everyone and urged all to adapt to the progress. Dr Md Rafiqul Matin, managing Director of Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Ltd, and Brigadier General Md Nasim Parvej, director general of Bangladesh Telecommunications Regulatory Commission, and Shyam Sunder Sikder, chairman of the Bangladesh Telecommunications Regulatory Commission, also spoke on the occasion. Md Harunur Rashid, director general of the Postal Department, gave the welcome address. There were eight stalls at the Postal Department’s exhibition. The visitors were appraised of different digital services, such as electronic money transfer service, postal cash card, online postal life insurance, digital land services, and mobile financial service of Nagad, etc.  Mustafa Jabbar and other guests visited these stalls. Guests came to Nagad’s stall and enquired about cash-out, cash-in and other services. They also learned about how to buy products using the Nagad wallet. Nagad officials gave the guests an idea of how much money is being saved every year as a result of the distribution of various government allowances through Nagad.

The environment required for rolling out 5G services in the country is already in place, Post and Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar said on Tuesday. The minister was speaking at a roundtable discussion on '5G Technology: Prospects and Actions' organised by Telecom Reporters' Network, Bangladesh (TRNB) and  mobile operator Robi at a city hotel. “Along with the business purpose of 5G, we all need to work towards solving the problems of the people,” he added. Read more: '5G can change the face of industry in Bangladesh' Speaking at the same event, Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) Chairman Shyam Sunder Sikder said an integrated market survey needs to be conducted to understand how the 5G services can be rolled out commercially. Association of Mobile Telecom Operators of Bangladesh (AMTOB) can play a leading role in this regard, he added. However, Hossain Sadat, corporate affairs officer of Grameenphone, said the ecosystem needs to be transformed to roll out 5G here. Besides, the towers will need a lot of electricity. “5G spectrum needs to be rolled out, we have 700 and 3.5 spectrum ready,” said BTRC system and service division director general Brigadier General Md Nasim Parvez "If necessary the existing policies will be changed for the welfare of all. Even if there is a need to share the spectrum, initiatives will be taken," he added. Read more: Modi unveils 5G mobile internet services in India At the event, the managing director of the state-owned Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited (BTCL) Md Rafiqul Matin said, “We are connecting the economic zones. We are trying to use a 5G connection when it rolls out. Working together with all the operators, we will move forward through infrastructure sharing.”

Posts and Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar on Sunday urged mobile operators to come up with a fixed rate for the internet packages they provide. Currently, the package rate is not acceptable and mobile data should be provided at a fixed rate, he said after inaugurating the latest benchmarking system at the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) to monitor the quality of service of mobile operators in the city. Read more: 5G internet within December: BTRC “Operators introduce and sell packages as they wish, there must be an acceptance when you sell the package,” Jabbar said. The minister also said the operators are unable to meet customer demand because 2018 spectrum and 2022 spectrum purchases are yet to be rolled out, he added. “And so, the customer service has to be questioned. We have put the operators under pressure. They have never before been under such pressure,” he added. Read more: Palak calls for Global Internet Governance Council & Frontier Technology Guidelines under UN The minister urged the BTRC to take steps to resolve the data package rate issue.

Minister for Posts and Telecommunications Mustafa Jabbar wants inclusion of ‘Cyber Security’ in primary school curriculum of Bangladesh. Jabbar came up with the remarks while addressing, as chief guest, a discussion on ‘Youth workshop for safe internet-2022’ organised to create awareness on cyber security at the Conference Centre of Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) on Thursday (October 13, 2022). BTRC Chairman Shyam Sunder Sikdar presided over the programme where Cyber Crime Awareness Foundation President Kazi Mustafiz delivered welcome speech, Director General of BTRC’s System and Services Division Brigadier General Md Nasim Parvez presented the keynote speech.   Read: Workshop on digital literacy for cyber security held Urging the Home Ministry to underscore digital crimes, Jabbar said every police station should have a cyber or digital crime unit with trained officials. The BTRC chairman said they took an initiative to set up a cyber-observation lab to ensure security. He said the Education Ministry should take steps to initiate class on cyber security, one day a week, to generate awareness among students. Read Specific policy needed to ensure cyber security of power sector: Nasrul Hamid “Though none should refrain from using technology, we should be more careful and protect our families and society from digital crime,” the BTRC chairman observed. He said BTRC has already submitted an outline to bring owners of social media platforms under law to the ministry. Daffodil International University’s Computer Science and Engineering department Head Prof Dr Touhid Bhuiyan, Digital Security Agency Director Tarique M Barkatullah and Additional Commissioner of Cyber Security department of police Nazmul Islam, among others spoke at the discussion on ‘Youth workshop for safe internet-2022’.    Read Cybersecurity Career Guide: How to Become a Cybersecurity Expert?

Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) in its latest crackdown on online gambling and betting has blocked 331 websites. On September 24, Posts and Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar said the government had permanently blocked 6,000 gambling sites. In a notice issued Monday, the telecom regulator BTRC said it also reported gambling and betting apps and links to Google, Facebook, and YouTube for blocking. Read BTRC: Compensation for call drops from Oct 1 "Google blocked 14 gambling-related apps in Bangladesh after receiving more than 150 complaints. The multinational technology company is taking steps to review the other complaints," the telecom watchdog said. The BTRC reported 27 links to Facebook and 69 to YouTube for gambling and betting lessons. The two social media giants blocked 17 links each and are reviewing the rest. Credit or debit cards are required to buy game chips. As it has become easier to get credit or debit cards in Bangladesh, many have turned to online gambling or betting. Taking advantage of this, criminal groups are siphoning off crores of taka from Bangladesh, the BTRC said. Read BTRC launches new unlimited data packages The country's laws do not allow gambling and betting in Bangladesh. However, completing registration through credit or debit cards or mobile financial services, many are getting involved in online gambling or betting through diverse apps or websites during domestic or international football, cricket, tennis, and other matches after.  Shutting down the gambling and betting websites in Bangladesh, BTRC aims to continue Bangladesh government's sucess in removing harmful contents from the virtual world.

Mobile phone users will have to be compensated for call drops from October 1. That's the curt message from Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) to telecom companies in this country. According to new BTRC guidelines issued on Monday, mobile phone operators will have to compensate their customers by refunding talk time for call drops with effect from October. Read: Govt has permanently blocked 22,000 porn sites and 6,000 gambling sites: Mustafa Jabbar The new guidelines were unveiled at a press briefing at the regulator's headquarters by BTRC chairman Shyam Sunder Sikder and Posts and Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar who was there as the chief guest. BTRC's New Guidelines: A customer can get information about the previous day/week/month's net call drop amount through common USSD code (*121*765#) -- applicable for all mobile phone operators -- from October 1. Mobile operators will compensate their subscribers with talk time of three pulses (30 seconds) for each call drop in case of 1st and 2nd call drops daily and four pulses (40 seconds) for each call drop in case of subsequent 3rd to 7th call drops as "financial and emotional loss." Read No more than 15 SIM cards under 1 NID: BTRC to deactivate extras Talk time refunded as compensation for call drops will be usable from the first call (00:00 hours) of the next day, which means no amount can be deducted from the customer's account for the call before the refunded talk time is fully utilised. The customer should be informed within the next 24 hours through SMSes about the talk time refunded as a result of call drops. An operator can refund the call minutes from that day of the occurrence of call drop if it wishes. A maximum period of 15 days will be applicable for the usage of the refunded talk time of the call drop. Read BTRC launches new unlimited data packages "If a customer receives a service by paying money, the operator should ensure proper service," Mustafa Jabbar said. “If telecom companies invest in telecommunications infrastructure rather than compensating customers, call drop rates will decrease,” he added.

Posts and Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar today said that robotics, artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things (IoT) will shape the future. The minister said this while attending a policy dialogue on safe use of technology in establishing peace and extending democracy, arranged by Bangladesh Enterprise Institute at a Dhaka hotel. Terming internet connectivity as mandatory for the digital age, Jabbar said that the government has taken up a project to bring the entire country under high speed internet. Read: No more than 15 SIM cards under 1 NID: BTRC to deactivate extras “To face the challenges posed by digital technology, first we need to eliminate digital divide. Everyone has to be digitally competent to enjoy the benefits of the upcoming technology-based world. If you keep your child away from the digital spheres, he/she will lag behind,” said Jabbar. Acknowledging that there are both good and bad sides of digital technology, the minister said that digital technology won’t have adverse impact on the state, society and people if everyone is also aware and cautious of its dark side. “The government has permanently blocked a total of 22,000 porn sites and 6,000 gambling sites. We’ve also achieved great success in removing harmful content from the virtual world through improving our ties with social media giants like Facebook and others. But such progress won’t be of any use if the consumers of digital technologies don’t practice restraint, which can only be done through digital literacy,” added Jabbar. Read Hijab protests: US takes action to increase Iranians’ access to internet The dialogue was presided over by Ambassador Humayun Kabir. Mezbah Uddin, Secretary of the Ministry of Youth and Sports, and Charles Whiteley, Head of Delegations of the European Union (EU), among others, spoke at the event.

Acknowledging the ever-increasing uses of postal services in the digital age, Posts and Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar on Thursday said that the country’s post offices have to be digitized to keep pace with the modernization process of Bangladesh. The Minister said this after vising the construction works of the country’s main post office in Gazipur’s Sadar upazila. “The postal service has become a reliable institution for digital commerce. Besides digitizing the postal service, we’ve also started providing digital trainings to 45,000 officials of this sector. We’ve created a masterplan the implementation of which will help the postal service to attain its desired standard,” said the Minister. Read: A group has long been unhappy with Nagad's success: Jabbar Jabbar added that the government has been able to take the decaying postal service to a good position. “The postal service has enormous infrastructure and manpower unlike any other communication service of the country. There is no alternative to the postal service in supplying daily essentials to remote areas. During the Covid-19 pandemic, the postal service played a vital role in transporting much-needed food and medicine instead of shutting down. This shows how necessary the postal service is,” Jabbar added. Read:Jabbar urges mobile opeators to boost service quality The main post office is being built at a cost of Tk 7 crore. Farid Ahmed, Postmaster General, Nasrin Parvin, Assistant Deputy Commissioner (ADC) of Gazipur and other officials of the postal service were present during the visit.