The license of Smart Telecom, which was automatically canceled due to the inability to renew, will now undergo a “legal” revision, called “design,” to be acquired by Ncell. In agreement with the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology, the board meeting of the Nepal Telecommunications Authority held on Tuesday decided to rectify the mentioned “error.”
As per the proposed amendment, the provision for the management of assets and responsibilities of the telecommunications service provider, in addition to the 15-year remaining period of Smart Telecom, will be included in the Telecommunications Property Management Regulations of 2079. According to sources from the authority, the service providers whose assets and license have been revoked, and whose license period is shorter than that of the granted permit, will be considered valid.
While the current Telecommunications Property Management Regulations extend the period of the granted permit, the same provision will apply to the validity period of that permit. This arrangement is informed by the Ministry’s sources, in conjunction with the plan to extend the validity of Smart Telecom’s license, which has been canceled by Ncell.
Ncell’s 25-year license is set to expire on 16th Bhadra 2086. If the assets and responsibilities of Smart Telecom, whose license has been canceled, are accepted by Ncell, as per the existing regulations, its license period will be extended by ten years, that is, until 2095.
According to the recommendation made by the authority to the ministry, the section that Smart Telecom has accepted ownership and responsibility of will not have an extension of its license period even after the amendment to the regulations.
Along with the license period, the authority has also recommended to amend the regulations for updating the policy regarding frequency policy, including the allowance of providers to increase the frequency beyond the limit in accordance with the frequency policy, although the debt and responsibility of the service provider whose license has been revoked will be accepted.
While the current regulations regarding property management policy do not apply the maximum limit of the frequency set by the frequency policy.
The Telecommunications Act, 2079, which was approved by the Sher Bahadur Deuba government, provided for the property management regulations of telecommunications service providers whose permission letters had not been renewed.
The Ministry of Communication and Information Technology, under the leadership of Jnanendra Bahadur Karki, had published the regulation in the Gazette on 19th Mansir, 2079 BS. The then-Secretary of the Ministry, Dr. Baikuntha Aryal, had signed it.
However, if the permission letter is not renewed within 25 days of the second phase in the Telecommunications Act, 2053, sub-section 5, the permission letter will be automatically cancelled, even if the provider has not renewed it.
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