Islamabad, September 02, 2021 (PPI-OT):The Standing Committee on Cabinet Secretariat has directed Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to strictly check use of cellular numbers for cybercrimes especially financially defrauding people.
The Committee further directed the Authority to also conduct performance evaluation of cellular companies to check the issues of weak mobile signals. The Committee met under the chairpersonship of Ms. Kishwer Zehra, MNA in Parliament House, and this morning.
The Committee was apprised that PTA has regularly been monitoring fraudulent calls made from domestic and international numbers and had taken various measures with the help of cellular companies to stop such calls.
The PTA Representative further informed the Committee that action had been initiated against the subscribers against whom complaints have been filed. He assured the Committee that the Authority would vigilantly monitor all illegal activities and misuse of cellular numbers. Regarding illegally issued SIMs, the PTA Representative informed that the system have been refined for issuance of SIM through live detection of finger prints.
The Representative of Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) also apprised the Committee about the issue under discussion. He informed that cybercrimes were being dealt under Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act. He informed that money fraudulently deducted from the bank accounts does not under the purview of the PECA and the same should be dealt by the State Bank of Pakistan.
The Committee after thorough discussion decided not to recommend the Benazir Income Support Programme (Amendment) Bill, 2020 and the National Poverty Reduction Bill, 2021” moved by MNAs Mr. Naveed Aamir Jeeva and Ms. Uzma Riaz, respectively for passage.
The Committee was of the view that existing provision of both the laws suffice thus the amendment proposed by the Members would either be duplication or would limit the scope of the existing laws. The Committee recommended that the Poverty Alleviation Council established under the Benazir Income Support Programme be made functional at the earliest and members from the Senate and National Assembly be included it.
The Committee pended discussion on the Starred Question No. 52 and 75, moved by MNAs Syed Mehmood Shah, Mr. Murtaza Javed Abbasi respectively; The Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal (Amendment) Bill, 2021 and the Benazir Income Support Programme (Amendment) Bill, 2021” moved by Mr. Naveed Aamir Jeeva till its next meeting.
The meeting was attended by Mr. Ali Muhammad Khan, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs, MNAs; Mr. Ali Nawaz Awan, Khawaja Sheraz Mehmood, Ms. Uzma Riaz, Mr. Rasheed Ahmad Khan, Rana Iradat Sharif Khan, Ms. Shahnaz Saleem Malik, Ms. Seema Mohiuddin Jameeli, Mr. Raza Rabani Khar, Mir Ghulam Ali Talpur, Mover Mr. Naveed Aamir Jeeva, Secretary Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety Division and other officers of concerned departments.
For more information, contact:
Secretary,
National Assembly of Pakistan
Automation Centre, National Assembly Secretariat,
Parliament House, Islamabad, Pakistan
Tel: +92-51-9221082-83
Fax: +92-51-9221106
Email: assembly@na.gov.pk
Website: www.na.gov.pk