Parliamentary committee directs suspension of TERAMOCS installation

The Public Account Committee under the House of Representatives has directed the concerned authority to stall the installation of the Telecommunication Traffic Monitoring and Fraud Control System (TERAMOCS) for the time being.

The Committee's meeting today directed the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology and the Nepal Telecommunications Authority (NTA) in this regard reasoning that it requires additional discussion on the sale of the license of Smart Telecom and the implementation of the rural telecommunication development fund.

The NTA is at work to install the TERAMOCS to monitor traffic and network, and fraud of telecommunication service providers. The NTA claimed that technology helps in controlling fraud and regulating the quality of telecommunication service. Similarly, the technology is expected to reduce frauds on customers and control revenue leakage.

In the meeting, Nepali Congress lawmaker Arjun Narsingh KC stressed the need for the regulator to be serious about the service of the telecommunication service providers. "Telecommunication providers have charged fees on customers for the service. The NTA should monitor whether the fees charged are actual or not. Communication has become an integral part of our life. Rural telecommunication has been limited to only slogans. This should be made effective," he said.

Similarly, CPN (UML) lawmaker Gokul Banskota underscored the need for the monitoring of whether or not consumers have got quality telecommunication service. "The NTA is a regulatory body. It should monitor telecommunication service," he said.

CPN (Maoist Centre) lawmaker Janardan Sharma called for providing credible and quality telecommunication service to remote districts and for the regulator to focus on the service of mobile and internet.

---