Senate Committee addresses internet connectivity issues, policy gaps & IT Sector Growth
ISLAMABAD, Jan 01 (SABAH): The meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunication, presided over by Senator Palwasha Mohammad Zai Khan, was held on Wednesday at the OLD PIPS Hall, Parliament Lodges.
The Committee Members expressed serious concerns over connectivity issues across various regions of Pakistan and strongly disapproved of the arbitrary shutdown of internet services without justification. The Chairperson, along with other Members, pointed out deficiencies in the monitoring mechanisms and criticized the lack of clarity surrounding internet shutdowns, despite a detailed briefing by the Chairman of PTA on the disruptions. Senator Palwasha remarked that blocking specific information and shutting down the internet entirely are fundamentally different actions, asserting that a complete internet shutdown is unjustifiable. Senator Kamran Murtaza added that such shutdowns appear to be politically motivated rather than technical decisions, emphasizing the need to depoliticize the process.
The Chairperson, Senator Palwasha Mohammad Zai Khan, further highlighted a report published in an English daily, which alleged losses in billions due to internet disruptions. She noted that, despite an additional millions allocated to improve services, the quality of internet in Pakistan remains poor compared to other countries, ranking just above Myanmar. She stressed that such reports likely have some basis. However, the Ministry denied the claims, with senior officials clarifying that the national outages referenced in the news occurred only during elections.
The Chairman of PTA reported that social media applications are shut down based on orders from the Supreme Court and High Court. The Committee directed that legal position on the rules framed under PECA Act, 2016 specifically in the light of outage of internet may be sought from Law Division and report be shared with the Committee.
The Secretary of the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication (MoITT) acknowledged that internet shutdowns have significant impacts and emphasized the need to address public perceptions surrounding them. The Chairperson reiterated that such perceptions arise for a reason and called on the Ministry to devise policies to tackle the negative narrative effectively.
Additionally, the Committee reviewed plans to enhance the country’s IT exports. The Secretary of MoITT reported aggregated growth for the year 2023–2024 and noted efforts to align the public’s perception with the actual progress being made.
In attendance were Senators Kamran Murtaza, Gurdeep Singh, Saifullah Sarwar Khan Nyazee, Nadeem Ahmed Bhutto, Dr. Mohammad Humayun Mohmand, and Manzoor Ahmed, along with the Secretary of MoITT, the Chairman of PTA, and senior officials from relevant departments.