22 May 2004	Saturday	02 Rabi-us-Saani 1425

LAHORE, May 21: Federal Information Technology Minister Awais Leghari has said the government is coming up with a broadband policy that will drastically cut bandwidth rates in the country.

Talking to reporters after the inauguration of a software technology park at NetSol IT Village here on Friday, he said new bandwidth rates would make DSL connectivity as cheap as dial-up connectivity. He, however, did not give any figures in this regard.

Answering a question about the proposed imposition of the GST on hardware and software imports, Mr Leghari said the IT ministry had taken up the case with the finance ministry. He said he was sure the government would not take any step that would hinder the development of computer hardware and the IT industry.

The minister said the government was also trying to enter into contracts with international software companies to make them outsource work to Pakistani software companies.

"We want to create opportunities for our local companies." Every country protects its software houses by signing such contracts at the international level, he added.

He said the PTCL would also give relief to masses in the next budget. He, however, did not say whether the relief would be in the form of reduction of line rent or call charges.

Earlier, speaking at the ceremony, Mr Leghari claimed that the infrastructure available for proliferation of IT in the country was not of international standard. "However, in a couple of years, Pakistan will not be lagging behind any other country of the world with regard to infrastructure." He also said the government would be able to create 2,000 to 3,000 entities within a couple of years to create IT demand in the country.

He said the federal government was also collaborating with provincial governments to create IT demand in government departments. He said he was also holding talks with industrialists and businessmen to make them invest in the IT sector to create opportunities.

Referring to the IT education being imparted in 'shops', he observed that lack of quality in the human resources being produced by local IT institutions needed to be addressed. He said these institutions were wasting students' time and parents' money.

Earlier, Punjab IT minister Abdul Aleem Khan said the government was reviewing the minimum standards for IT curricula. He said the government had also prioritized recruitment of qualified IT academicians in educational institutions to improve the quality of IT education.

He said the government was also setting up computer labs in government schools. NetSol president Saleem Ghauri said the NetSol software technology park would accommodate some 600 software experts in its new building.