3G, 4G service: Rs260b tax will be collected in treasury every year, says Nawaz

Premier also says appreciation of rupee against US dollar is the biggest achievement of his govt.


Saqib Nasir May 22, 2014
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif addresses the 3G and 4G license awarding ceremony in Islamabad on Thursday. PHOTO: PID

ISLAMABAD: A month after the auction for next-generation telecom spectrums, which raised over $1.1 billion with the sale of 3G and 4G licences, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif praised his government for getting the new technology in Pakistan and termed it a major accomplishment.

Speaking at a special ceremony held in Islamabad on Thursday to hand over the 3G and 4G mobile spectrum licenses to the successful mobile companies -- Mobilink, Telenor, Ufone and Zong -- the premier claimed that Rs260 billion will be collected in the treasury every year because of the new technology.

In the next four years this first-of-its-kind technology will create millions of jobs in the service sector, he added.

Commenting on the progress of the country, Nawaz said that "today's Pakistan has developed a lot as compared to the Pakistan on June 5 last year."

The prime minister also spoke highly about the various projects that the government was working on to avert the energy crisis, claiming them as some of the successful achievements of the Pakistan Muslim League - Nawaz (PML-N) government.

Nawaz also stated that the appreciation of the rupee against the US dollar was the biggest achievement of his government.

Finance Minister Ishaq Dar and Pakistan Telecommunication Authority chairperson Dr Ismail Shah were also present at the ceremony.

COMMENTS (14)

Uzair Malik | 10 years ago | Reply

@seed: Are you saying that 3G, 4G is the key to good governance? Afghanistan has got 4G as well, looks like shiny days ahead for them....in fact they got it last year...I wonder what is holding back the winds of change in Afghanistan....dude think beyond trains, buses, roads and artifical controlling of market forces to manipulate the exchange rate....I am not saying it is a bad initiative but they should focus on needs more than the wants!

seed | 10 years ago | Reply

@Uzair Malik: Faster communication changes the whole world. It throws light on a lot of things making it harder for powerful people to pull the wool over our eyes. It gives you access to new sources of knowledge and new ways of earning a living. If you can't appreciate this then you clearly lack imagination. The Internet is as big a game changer as motorized transport was.

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