BTCL or Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited is the largest telecommunications company in Bangladesh. The company was founded as the Bangladesh Telegraph & Telephone Board (BTTB) following Bangladesh's independence in 1971. On July 1, 2008 the BTTB became a public limited company and was renamed as BTCL.[1] The Bangladesh government initially owned all BTCL shares, but stated it would sell the shares to the public the following year. The value of BTCL is estimated to be at ৳15,000 crore (৳150 billion). BTCL has a total of 12,636 officials and staff.
Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited (BTCL)
BTCL provides land-line telephone services in Bangladesh's urban areas, including domestic long-distance calling and international services as well as internet services. In 2004, the Bangladesh Government issued a number of PSTN licenses to private companies, but they were barred from providing services in the lucrative Dhaka market (which accounts for the majority of the nationwide market). The monopoly held by BTCL was broken when other operators started to receive licenses from 2007.
The Telegraph branch under the Posts and Telegraph Department was created in 1853 in the then British India and was regulated afterwards under the Telegraph Act-1885. The Telegraph branch was reconstructed in 1962 in the then East Pakistan as Pakistan Telegraph and Telephone Department.
Post-independenceEdit
Old Logo of BTCL, formerly known as BTTB
Following Bangladesh's independence, the Bangladesh Telegraph and Telephone Department was set up under the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications in 1971. This was converted into a corporate body named 'Telegraph and Telephone Board' by promulgation of Telegraph and Telephone Board Ordinance, 1975. Pursuant to a 1979 ordinance, the Telegraph and Telephone Board was converted into a government board named the Bangladesh Telegraph and Telephone Board (BTTB).
On 1 July 2008, BTTB transformed to a government-owned Public Limited Company under a new name of Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited BTCL.[1] BTCL has launched a 24-hour call centre for customers. Customers in Dhaka will be able to call the number and reach the BTCL for enquiry, according to a company media release.[2] BTCL runs a red telephone exchange for the VIPs which is secured and always live.[3]
Internet servicesEdit
BTCL provides dial-up Internet access in all 64 districts of the country, making it the most-accessible Internet service provider in the country. As of January 2009 its total dial-up subscriber is 32,433.[citation needed] Since the beginning of 2007 BTCL have improved its Dial-up Internet service for better customer satisfaction. It also handles the .bd domain.[4]
BTCL provides consumer-level broadband Internet services under the branding of BCUBE. The service is provided through ADSL2+ technology. BTCL has outsourced its BCUBE sales and customer support to EMEM Systems Ltd, System & Services Ltd (SSL) and Sisview Technologies Ltd. Till now btcl have got about 15,000 customers. BTCL's monthly income about ৳19,000,000 per month from this service.
The state-owned telephony firm will develop a broadband wireless access network across the country soon with Korean help to provide uninterrupted upgraded services to its clients, officials said. Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited (BTCL) in cooperation with Korean Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF) will establish the modern network.[5]
SatellitesEdit
Bangladesh's first satellite on Earth's orbit will have 40 transponders to provide telecommunications and broadcast services. US-based Space Partnership International (SPI) has already started designing the satellite and will also help launch it under a contract signed with the government. The two ground stations that will control the satellite will be built at Gazipur's Joydebpur and Rangamati's Betbunia on the land owned by Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited (BTCL). The government plans to have the satellite, named after the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, sent to space by June 2017.[6]
Bill defaultsEdit
BTCL Managing Director eng Mahfuz Uddin Ahmed said it undertook a scheme to realise the outstanding phone bills from government and private agencies, and general customers by giving them 5–6 months. “If this flexible approach fails to realise the dues, we'll take legal action against the defaulters,” he added. Mahfuz also said they were trying to realise outstanding phone bills of ৳1,062 crore (৳10.62 billion) from different international call carriers through legal procedure. According to BTCL statistics, government agencies owe ৳102.46 crore, semi-govt organisations ৳12.10 crore, private agencies ৳313.18 crore, Bangladesh Railway ৳1.12 crore, and newspapers/agencies ৳1.17 crore to BTCL. Besides, ৳247.65 crore have been due as some telephone lines were disconnected due to non-payment of bills. Moreover, 15 foreign private carriers (pre-paid system) have a total of ৳10.93 crore due to BTCL, while 52 foreign private carriers (post-paid system) ৳989.11 crore and 26 national foreign carriers ৳73.55 crore. BTCL Director (international) Sharifuzzaman said international calls enter Bangladesh using BTCL's network and the call carriers have to pay ৳1.5 cent per minute.[7]
Graft and controversyEdit
Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited (BTCL) suffered revenue loss of at least ৳2,000 crore in last six years due to corruption, revealed a TIB study April 31, 2014. Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) identified tampering with the BTCL's international call records as one of its major corrupted areas.[8]
Bangladesh's state-owned telecommunications company is refusing to reconnect a British firm to the country's network despite having been ordered to do so by the courts. London-based Zamir Telecom has been cut off from the Bangladesh network since March, causing it significant financial damage. Bangladesh's controversial telecoms minister, Abdul Latif Siddique, has admitted giving the order for the disconnection of Zamir Telecom from the Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited (BTCL). This was in breach of a 2010 court order overturning a similar situation. Zamir Telecom successfully challenged BTCL in a Dhaka court in early May when judges ordered the firm's reconnection within 36 hours. But the court order was ignored again. This is purportedly because of an ongoing arbitration process between BTCL and Zamir Telecom over disputed invoicing, despite judges saying the connection must be maintained alongside the talks.[9]
The Anti-Corruption Commission on August 25, 2013 approved filing four cases against 22 people, including Managing Director SOM Kalim Ullah and three other former managing directors of Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited, in connection with embezzling over ৳5.75bn through illegal Voice over Internet Protocol business. ACC Commissioner M Shahabuddin said the commission had approved filing the cases at a recent meeting. "Since we have found their involvement in the graft allegation the commission has taken the decision." BTCL Managing Director SOM Kalim Ullah, former managing directors SM Khabiruzzaman, Afsar-ul-Alam and AM Abu Sayed Khan, former member (maintenance and operation) Mohammad Tawfiq, former divisional engineers Ronel Chakma and Habibur Rahman Pramanik, Ericsson Bangladesh Ltd's Contract Manager Asif Jahid, Relation Manager Nazrul Islam and engineer Masrurul Hakim will be made accused in the cases. ACC officials said the BTCL officials in connivance with Ericsson Bangladesh Ltd embezzled the money by erasing incoming international call minutes from call detail record of ITX-5 and ITX-7.[10]
ReferencesEdit
^ ab. The New Nation. 1 July 2008. Archived from the original on 29 October 2009. Retrieved 15 February 2010.
^"BTCL opens 24-hour call centre for customers in Dhaka". bdnews24.com. 21 May 2015. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
^Muhammad Zahidul, Islam (4 December 2014). "SSF gets high capacity IP telephony licence". Dhaka Tribune. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
^"Dot BD Domain Registration Checker". ExonHost. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
^Islam, Khairul (5 September 2014). "BTCL to develop countrywide broadband wireless access network". The Financial Express. Dhaka. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
^"Govt greenlights ৳30bn project to launch satellite Bangabandhu". bdnews24.com. 16 September 2014. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
^"BTCL in loss of ৳1,800cr in bills". The Daily Star. UNB. 28 January 2015. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
^"Tk 2,000cr lost for graft in 6 years". The Daily Star. 1 May 2014. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
^Croucher, Shane (9 May 2014). "Bangladesh State Telecoms Company Refuses to Reconnect UK Firm Zamir Telecom Despite Court Order". International Business Times. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
^Anik, Syed Samiul Basher (26 August 2013). "ACC to file cases against BTCL officials". Dhaka Tribune. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
External linksEdit
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited.
Official website
October 24, 2023
bangladesh, telecommunications, company, limited, this, article, multiple, issues, please, help, improve, discuss, these, issues, talk, page, learn, when, remove, these, template, messages, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, hel. This article has multiple issues Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page Learn how and when to remove these template messages This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited news newspapers books scholar JSTOR January 2015 Learn how and when to remove this template message This article needs to be updated Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information January 2015 Learn how and when to remove this template message BTCL or Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited is the largest telecommunications company in Bangladesh The company was founded as the Bangladesh Telegraph amp Telephone Board BTTB following Bangladesh s independence in 1971 On July 1 2008 the BTTB became a public limited company and was renamed as BTCL 1 The Bangladesh government initially owned all BTCL shares but stated it would sell the shares to the public the following year The value of BTCL is estimated to be at 15 000 crore 150 billion BTCL has a total of 12 636 officials and staff Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited BTCL Emblem of BTCLNative nameব ল দ শ ট ল কম উন ক শন স ক ম প ন ল ম ট ড ব ট স এল FormerlyBangladesh Telegraph amp Telephone Board BTTB IndustryTelecommunicationsFounded1971 as BTTB 1 July 2008 15 years ago 2008 07 01 as BTCL HeadquartersBTCL 37 E Eskaton Garden Dhaka BangladeshOwnerGovernment of BangladeshWebsitebtcl gov bdBTCL provides land line telephone services in Bangladesh s urban areas including domestic long distance calling and international services as well as internet services In 2004 the Bangladesh Government issued a number of PSTN licenses to private companies but they were barred from providing services in the lucrative Dhaka market which accounts for the majority of the nationwide market The monopoly held by BTCL was broken when other operators started to receive licenses from 2007 Contents 1 History 1 1 Early history 1 2 Post independence 1 3 Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited 2 Internet services 3 Satellites 4 Bill defaults 5 Graft and controversy 6 References 7 External linksHistory EditEarly history Edit The Telegraph branch under the Posts and Telegraph Department was created in 1853 in the then British India and was regulated afterwards under the Telegraph Act 1885 The Telegraph branch was reconstructed in 1962 in the then East Pakistan as Pakistan Telegraph and Telephone Department Post independence Edit nbsp Old Logo of BTCL formerly known as BTTBFollowing Bangladesh s independence the Bangladesh Telegraph and Telephone Department was set up under the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications in 1971 This was converted into a corporate body named Telegraph and Telephone Board by promulgation of Telegraph and Telephone Board Ordinance 1975 Pursuant to a 1979 ordinance the Telegraph and Telephone Board was converted into a government board named the Bangladesh Telegraph and Telephone Board BTTB Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited Edit nbsp BTCL HQ Telejogajog Bhaban 37 E Eskaton Garden Dhaka Bangladesh On 1 July 2008 BTTB transformed to a government owned Public Limited Company under a new name of Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited BTCL 1 BTCL has launched a 24 hour call centre for customers Customers in Dhaka will be able to call the number and reach the BTCL for enquiry according to a company media release 2 BTCL runs a red telephone exchange for the VIPs which is secured and always live 3 Internet services Edit nbsp BTCL provides dial up Internet access in all 64 districts of the country making it the most accessible Internet service provider in the country As of January 2009 its total dial up subscriber is 32 433 citation needed Since the beginning of 2007 BTCL have improved its Dial up Internet service for better customer satisfaction It also handles the bd domain 4 BTCL provides consumer level broadband Internet services under the branding of BCUBE The service is provided through ADSL2 technology BTCL has outsourced its BCUBE sales and customer support to EMEM Systems Ltd System amp Services Ltd SSL and Sisview Technologies Ltd Till now btcl have got about 15 000 customers BTCL s monthly income about 19 000 000 per month from this service The state owned telephony firm will develop a broadband wireless access network across the country soon with Korean help to provide uninterrupted upgraded services to its clients officials said Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited BTCL in cooperation with Korean Economic Development Cooperation Fund EDCF will establish the modern network 5 Satellites EditBangladesh s first satellite on Earth s orbit will have 40 transponders to provide telecommunications and broadcast services US based Space Partnership International SPI has already started designing the satellite and will also help launch it under a contract signed with the government The two ground stations that will control the satellite will be built at Gazipur s Joydebpur and Rangamati s Betbunia on the land owned by Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited BTCL The government plans to have the satellite named after the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman sent to space by June 2017 6 Bill defaults EditBTCL Managing Director eng Mahfuz Uddin Ahmed said it undertook a scheme to realise the outstanding phone bills from government and private agencies and general customers by giving them 5 6 months If this flexible approach fails to realise the dues we ll take legal action against the defaulters he added Mahfuz also said they were trying to realise outstanding phone bills of 1 062 crore 10 62 billion from different international call carriers through legal procedure According to BTCL statistics government agencies owe 102 46 crore semi govt organisations 12 10 crore private agencies 313 18 crore Bangladesh Railway 1 12 crore and newspapers agencies 1 17 crore to BTCL Besides 247 65 crore have been due as some telephone lines were disconnected due to non payment of bills Moreover 15 foreign private carriers pre paid system have a total of 10 93 crore due to BTCL while 52 foreign private carriers post paid system 989 11 crore and 26 national foreign carriers 73 55 crore BTCL Director international Sharifuzzaman said international calls enter Bangladesh using BTCL s network and the call carriers have to pay 1 5 cent per minute 7 Graft and controversy EditBangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited BTCL suffered revenue loss of at least 2 000 crore in last six years due to corruption revealed a TIB study April 31 2014 Transparency International Bangladesh TIB identified tampering with the BTCL s international call records as one of its major corrupted areas 8 Bangladesh s state owned telecommunications company is refusing to reconnect a British firm to the country s network despite having been ordered to do so by the courts London based Zamir Telecom has been cut off from the Bangladesh network since March causing it significant financial damage Bangladesh s controversial telecoms minister Abdul Latif Siddique has admitted giving the order for the disconnection of Zamir Telecom from the Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited BTCL This was in breach of a 2010 court order overturning a similar situation Zamir Telecom successfully challenged BTCL in a Dhaka court in early May when judges ordered the firm s reconnection within 36 hours But the court order was ignored again This is purportedly because of an ongoing arbitration process between BTCL and Zamir Telecom over disputed invoicing despite judges saying the connection must be maintained alongside the talks 9 The Anti Corruption Commission on August 25 2013 approved filing four cases against 22 people including Managing Director SOM Kalim Ullah and three other former managing directors of Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited in connection with embezzling over 5 75bn through illegal Voice over Internet Protocol business ACC Commissioner M Shahabuddin said the commission had approved filing the cases at a recent meeting Since we have found their involvement in the graft allegation the commission has taken the decision BTCL Managing Director SOM Kalim Ullah former managing directors SM Khabiruzzaman Afsar ul Alam and AM Abu Sayed Khan former member maintenance and operation Mohammad Tawfiq former divisional engineers Ronel Chakma and Habibur Rahman Pramanik Ericsson Bangladesh Ltd s Contract Manager Asif Jahid Relation Manager Nazrul Islam and engineer Masrurul Hakim will be made accused in the cases ACC officials said the BTCL officials in connivance with Ericsson Bangladesh Ltd embezzled the money by erasing incoming international call minutes from call detail record of ITX 5 and ITX 7 10 References Edit a b BTTB BSCCL turned into public limited company The New Nation 1 July 2008 Archived from the original on 29 October 2009 Retrieved 15 February 2010 BTCL opens 24 hour call centre for customers in Dhaka bdnews24 com 21 May 2015 Retrieved 23 May 2015 Muhammad Zahidul Islam 4 December 2014 SSF gets high capacity IP telephony licence Dhaka Tribune Retrieved 23 May 2015 Dot BD Domain Registration Checker ExonHost Retrieved 23 May 2015 Islam Khairul 5 September 2014 BTCL to develop countrywide broadband wireless access network The Financial Express Dhaka Retrieved 23 May 2015 Govt greenlights 30bn project to launch satellite Bangabandhu bdnews24 com 16 September 2014 Retrieved 23 May 2015 BTCL in loss of 1 800cr in bills The Daily Star UNB 28 January 2015 Retrieved 23 May 2015 Tk 2 000cr lost for graft in 6 years The Daily Star 1 May 2014 Retrieved 23 May 2015 Croucher Shane 9 May 2014 Bangladesh State Telecoms Company Refuses to Reconnect UK Firm Zamir Telecom Despite Court Order International Business Times Retrieved 23 May 2015 Anik Syed Samiul Basher 26 August 2013 ACC to file cases against BTCL officials Dhaka Tribune Retrieved 23 May 2015 External links Edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited Official website Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited amp oldid 1178509490 History, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
