Govt expanding telecom spectrum to 600 MHz: Sabin Ghori

ISLAMABAD: The government is expanding the country’s telecom spectrum to 600 megahertz, a move expected to increase internet capacity by around 200 per cent and significantly improve speed, stability, and service continuity, the National Assembly was informed on Thursday.

Parliamentary Secretary for IT and Telecom Sabin Ghori, responding to questions during Question Hour, said the sharp rise in internet usage over the past one to two years — driven by the digitisation of government services, education, employment portals, and businesses — had placed immense pressure on the existing network, resulting in slow speeds and frequent disruptions.

She told the House that tangible improvements in internet services are expected by the end of February once the spectrum expansion process is completed.

Ghori explained that in many areas the issue was not the absence of telecom operators but technical constraints, including limited spectrum availability, backhaul congestion, electricity outages, and delays in regulatory approvals.

On network coverage, she said 2G services were being maintained in several regions to ensure basic voice connectivity where 3G and 4G services were unavailable. However, she acknowledged that most connectivity issues were related to data services, which are highly dependent on adequate spectrum.

Addressing concerns regarding Balochistan and other remote areas, the parliamentary secretary said the Universal Service Fund (USF) had invested Rs52 billion in Balochistan over the past five years — the highest allocation among all provinces — for fibre-optic expansion and the installation of telecom towers.

She noted, however, that progress in certain regions remained slow due to security challenges, power outages, and incidents of tower vandalism. In some cases, vendors refrained from participating in tenders because of security risks, leading to project delays.

Ghori said the government, in coordination with the interior ministry, was treating the issue on an emergency basis to ensure project completion.

She also suggested that online job application deadlines should remain flexible due to connectivity challenges in some areas. “At this stage, longer application windows should be considered, but within the next six months, we aim to reach a level where even shorter durations can be managed efficiently,” she said.

In addition to spectrum expansion, she informed the House that work was underway on low-Earth orbit satellite solutions, which are expected to significantly improve internet access in remote and underserved regions, particularly in Balochistan.