Impact of coronavirus: Internet Service Providers demand Tk 610cr govt grant

Internet Service Providers Association of Bangladesh (ISPAB) is demanding a Tk 610 crore grant from the government, to help member companies through the next six months for the pandemic-induced work order cancellations and decline in service requests.

In a letter to Telecom Minister Mustafa Jabbar, ISPAB today urged the government to pay their staff salaries and office rent for the next six months, said Aminul Hakim, president of ISPAB.

About Tk 800 crore will be required to pay their employees' salaries and they are demanding half of that from the government. At the same time, they are seeking Tk 210 crore as office rent, Hakim told The Daily Star.

"At least a third of our business is gone, as corporate houses have disconnected their connections on a large scale. We cannot collect bills from the households either because of the lockdown," he added.

"In my company, we can hardly collected 20 percent of bills as everybody is saying that they will pay later or they have to discontinue connections," he said.

ISPAB also seeks withdrawal of the value added tax at all levels of internet services and suspend revenue sharing with Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission.