BTRC fails to realise Tk 18b dues from IGW operators

Repeated efforts of the telecom regulator to realise nearly Tk18 billion outstanding dues from some international gateway (IGW) operators went in vain due to poor response from most of the defaulters.
According to the BTRC sources, until August 20, the long-pending dues stood at Tk17.83 billion to the IGWs including the state-owned company, BTCL.
Moreover, they said that the volume of such dues to the defaulter gateway operators is gradually increasing as they don't bother about the regulator's warnings and operating guidelines.
"Dues of the defaulter operators excluding state-run telecom company BTCL reached Tk8.38 billion", said a senior official of the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC).
Requesting anonymity, the official said until July 15, the receivable amount was Tk 6.8 billion from some 19 IGW operators besides the Bangladesh Telecommunication Company Limited (BTCL).
Meanwhile, the BTCL owed Tk 9.46 billion to the regulator as its share of IGW charges, whereas the total dues of the state-owned company is nearly Tk16 billion.
Of the total amount of the BTCL, IGW fee is Tk 9.45billion, Interconnection exchange (ICX) Tk4.62 billion, international incoming call of PSTN (public switched telephone network) Tk187 million and PSTN revenue sharing Tk1.75 billion.
Despite repeated warnings and notices, some companies did not clear their outstanding dues, depriving the government of a large revenue income. Even some of them remain absconding to avoid punishment, the official said.
Another senior official at the BTRC said that the BTCL just pays its licence renewal fees for various services including ICX to run their business, but it takes no initiative to pay other dues.       
The regulator issued warning notices thrice to the defaulter operator Ratul Telecom Limited saying each time that this is the finale notice, but the operator is yet to respond in this connection.
"We had given Ratul Telecom July 30 as the last deadline to pay its outstanding bill of Tk0.89 billion. Unfortunately, the operator is yet to respond", the official said.
The regulator has already closed the operations of six gateway operators and closure of some five others are under process as they frequently violate the telecom rules and regulations.
The closed operators include Kay Telecommunications, Bestec Telecom Limited, Vision Tel Limited and Ratul Telecom.   
Besides, the Kay Telecommunication has remained out of contact since late 2013 with nearly Tk 0.78 billion lying overdue with it. Failing to recover the dues from the IGW operator, the BTRC took recourse to legal procedure.
On May 20, the commission published a notice in the media asking the company to reply within ten days since the date of publication of the notice, but the operator has not responded yet.
In addition, the authorities usually take legal action including filing criminal cases against the defaulters. "Usually, we file cases under the public demand recovery act against a defaulting company", the official added.