Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission

The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) (Bengali: বাংলাদেশ টেলিযোগাযোগ নিয়ন্ত্রণ কমিশন) is an independent commission founded under the Bangladesh Telecommunication Act, 2001 (Act # 18 of 2001). The BTRC is responsible for regulating all matters related to telecommunications (wire, cellular, satellite and cable) of Bangladesh. The chairman of the commission has the status of a judge of the Bangladesh High Court.[1] Shyam Sunder Sikder is the chairman of the commission.[2]

Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission
AbbreviationBTRC
Formation2002
PurposeRegulate telecommunication in Bangladesh
HeadquartersDhaka, Bangladesh
Region served
Bangladesh
Official language
Bengali
Chairman
Shyam Sunder Sikder
Parent organization
Posts and Telecommunications Division
Websitewww.btrc.gov.bd

History

In 1979, the Bangladesh Telegraph and Telephone Board was created through the Bangladesh Telegraph and Telephone Board ordinance.[3] The ordinance was revised in 1995.[3]

The BTRC started operating from 31 January 2002 with a vision of facilitating affordable telecommunication services and increasing the teledensity to at least 10 telephones per 100 inhabitants by 2010.[3] The ordinance was updated with the passage of Telecommunication Act (Corrected) bill in 2010.[3]

In 2016, the salaries of the commissions and chairman was doubled by the government of Bangladesh.[4]

Censorship

In March 2013, BTRC was criticised by the Human Rights Watch[5] and other groups for banning a number of "atheist blogger" websites.[6] Blogs banned by the BTRC included the award-winning popular blog[7] by Asif Mohiuddin, who had been attacked by a machete wielding group in January.[8]

Mohiuddin was arrested the following month,[9] along with three other bloggers .[10]

Chairmen
Sl No. Name Term Start Term End Reference
1. Syed Margub Murshed 31 January 2002 30 January 2005 [11]
2. Muhammad Omar Farooq 31 March 2005 15 March 2007 [11]
3. Major General Manzurul Alam 22 April 2007 10 February 2009 [11]
4. Major General Zia Ahmed 26 February 2009 10 September 2012 [11]
5. Md. Giashuddin Ahmed 10 September 2012 22 October 2012 [11]
6. Sunil Kanti Bose 23 October 2012 23 September 2015 [12][13]
7. Shahjahan Mahmood 24 September 2015 1 September 2018 [13]
8. Md Jahurul Haque 31 January 2019 4 December 2020 [14][15]
9. Shyam Sunder Sikder 14 December 2020 Present [15]
  • Under Construction in BTRC Building
    Under Construction in BTRC Building
  • Under Construction in BTRC Building Southwest side
    Under Construction in BTRC Building Southwest side
  • Under Construction in BTRC Building Southeast side
    Under Construction in BTRC Building Southeast side

See also

References
  1. "BTRC chairman to enjoy status of HC judge". UNB. Retrieved 20 September 2022.
  2. "Comissioners". Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission. Retrieved 20 September 2022.
  3. "Vision & History". Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission. Retrieved 20 September 2022.
  4. Ahmed, Shamim. "Salaries 'to double' for BTRC chief, commissioners". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 20 September 2022.
  5. "Bangladesh: Crackdown on Bloggers, Editors Escalates". Human Rights Watch. 15 April 2013.
  6. Arafatul Islam (25 March 2013). "Bangladesh gags award-winning blogger". Deutsche-Welle.
  7. Asif Mohiuddin. "God, Almighty only in name but impotent in reality (transl)". somewhereinblog.net. present blog page reads: "blog has been withdrawn or cancelled for violating terms and conditions" (transl.)
  8. "4 held over attempt to kill blogger". The Daily Star. 2 April 2013.
  9. "Blogger Asif Mohiuddin arrested over "blasphemous" blog posts". Reporters Without Borders. 3 April 2013. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. quote: "We call for Mohiuddin’s immediate and unconditional release," Reporters Without Borders said.
  10. Emran Hossain (4 March 2013). "Bangladesh Arrests 'Atheist Bloggers,' Cracking Down on Critics". The Huffington Post.
  11. "Previous Comissioners". Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission. Retrieved 20 September 2022.
  12. "Sunil Kanti Bose is new BTRC Chairman". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 20 September 2022.
  13. "MNP will solve call drops menace, says outgoing BTRC Chairman Sunil Kanti Bose". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 20 September 2022.
  14. "BTRC gets new chairman". The Daily Star. 31 January 2019. Retrieved 20 September 2022.
  15. "Shyam Sunder Sikder made BTRC chairman". Dhaka Tribune. 14 December 2020. Retrieved 20 September 2022.


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