November 23, 2006	Thursday	Ziqa'ad 1, 1427

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KOHAT, Nov 22: The abrupt closure of e-payment facility by the PTCL in the district and adjoining areas has shaken the confidence of private investors, caused huge losses to franchise dealers and problems to customers.

The PTCL had started e-payment facility in the NWFP in March and awarded franchise dealership to a company.

The company appointed a franchise dealer in Kohat to cover the region up to Kurram Agency in May.

At least 39 outlets were opened in the area against a security deposit of Rs10,000 per outlet and out of which Rs7,500 was refundable.

The company singed an agreement with terminal holders that they would be paid 5.5 per cent on each telephone bill and soon gas billing would also be started through e-payment. Later, the fee was raised to Rs20,500, all non-refundable.

PTCL staff of the revenue department, linemen and postmen also started collecting the bill which caused losses to people who had deposited fee and established offices in the area. Despite repeated complaints, the PTCL and franchise dealers failed to stop the illegal practice and also refused to refund the security money.

Later, the company decreased the profit margin to 5 per cent and then to 3 per cent in a period of two months.

The chairman of the terminal holders association said that the facility had been closed down on October 14 without any intimation and the company had asked them to claim security (only those who had deposited Rs10,000) by Nov 28.

He said they were depositing the bills of their customers made with a lot of efforts through PTCL cards, whereas on each telephone connection payments of only three bills were allowed.

The PTCL staff have been accused of minting money by clearing bills in the revenue department after hiring field staff for the purpose, he said, adding that the association could prove the illegal activities of the PTCL staff.

He said the company had asked them to wait till Feb 2007 and the matter would be resolved and the facility would be resumed.

Meanwhile, the company was not ready to refund the security money to those who wanted to close their business and one of the field officers of the A to Z company had disappeared owing to his inability to provide any kind of surety to them.

This correspondent tried to contact Dilawar Khan on telephone number 510128 on Tuesday and Wednesday but nobody attended the phone.