KARACHI: Customs Intelligence & Investigation (ASO) faced severe resistance during a raid on Star Mobile market Friday evening and had to fold the operation.
According to the details, the authorities had the information that a vehicle was carrying smuggled mobile phones. The authorities found the vehicle loaded with mobile phones at Star Mobile market. But, the market association along with shop owners and many other persons surrounded the raiding party manhandled them and forcefully took the phones loaded vehicle to some other place.
Mobile phones are smuggled into the country on a large scale and several big names are involved in this dirty business. The smuggling of mobile phones saves the duty/taxes on one hand and on the other hand un-approved type of sets find their way in the country.
Unscrupulous elements are brining such banned phones which otherwise are not importable. The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) grants approval to the type of phones that can be imported.
Mobile phone manufacturing companies, which make GSM phones, assign eight digits numbers to each lot. One million mobile phone sets are made of one prototype. The manufacturer is allowed to divide this figure into ten models of 100,000 each with different facilities. Each mobile set has a separate identity and is traceable, PTA officer told the bench.
The condition of obtaining “Type Approval” is applied because of peculiar and potential security situation in the country and to save the consumers/purchasers of mobile sets from substandard sets. There is a case where thousands of mobile sets of same IMEI were imported compromising the national security.
PTA has banned the import of “Black Phone” as it has a system, which allows teleconferencing between a group of six people and calls made on these devices cannot be traced. PTA normally grants Type Approval in two weeks time. The genuine companies, exporters and importers have been following the new condition. It is beneficial for common users also as they can claim guarantee. PTA is developing a system and in near future PTA would be sending SMS to owners of mobile phones to get their Type Approval verified or their phones will be unable to connect to cellular phone companies net works.
Recently, Customs raided Star Mobile Market, but the officials had to come back a large number of shop owners and other people gathered at the sport and a law & order situation was created.