Govt delays blocking of unauthorised handsets by 3 months

The government has delayed the blocking of unauthorised mobile handsets by up to three months, a top official said today.

Earlier, the blocking of unofficial handsets through the implementation of the National Equipment Identity Register (NEIR) system was scheduled to begin on December 16.

Now, the blocking will be delayed by up to three months to allow the government to make the necessary preparations, Faiz Ahmad Taiyeb, special assistant to the chief adviser on telecom and ICT, told The Daily Star today.

The development comes amid protests from mobile phone sellers against the implementation of the NEIR system.

Earlier this evening, mobile phone traders and their employees staged a protest at Karwan Bazar in Dhaka, blocking the busy intersection and bringing traffic in the surrounding areas to a standstill.

The demonstration began around 5:45 pm, with several hundred traders participating in a sit-in.

Imran Hossain, a mobile phone trader from Bashundhara City Shopping Complex, said the protesters are demanding amendments to the newly introduced NEIR policy.

"Under the NEIR system, we have to pay around 57 percent tax to import mobile phones, which would nearly double the retail price compared to current rates," he added.

Hossain said, "We will not leave the streets until the government announces the necessary amendments to the NEIR policy."

This correspondent visited the protest at 8:20 pm, when a mobile phone trader said they were leaving the streets, as the government had delayed the implementation of the NEIR system by three months.

"But we want written assurance from the government by tomorrow," the trader told The Daily Star.