KARACHI: PTCL subscribers in Orangi not getting bills on time
By A Reporter
KARACHI, Dec 8: Subscribers of the Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) have been facing great hardship in receiving their monthly bills within the due date and most of them often have to visit the local customer service offices to get a duplicate bill.
The problem had started worsening since the taking over if the bill delivery system by a private company.
Many subscribers have been complaining that they were either not getting the monthly bill or being delivered the same very late. Ultimately, they said, they had to visit the local exchange for a duplicate bill to avoid default or late payment charge.
It has been observed that owing to the trouble, a number of PTCL subscribers has now stopped using their PTCL phones and switched over to cell-phones.
At the Orangi Telephone Exchange, an official stated that the problem of the late delivery of bills had worsened owing to the implementation of the new policy.
He revealed that out of 33,000 subscribers in Orangi Town, about 4,000 used to get duplicate bills every month, adding that about 50 per cent increase had been observed since January 2006.
“The government is trying to minimise the overheads and, therefore, handed over the contract of bill delivery to a private company. However, this has resulted in a reduction in the number of PTCL subscribers,” commented another PTCL official.
When contacted, an official of the contracting company, M/s International Contract Management (ICM), told this scribe that the services of about 16 persons had been availed only in Orangi Town to distribute the bills in time but still there were problems, mainly due to errors in the addresses.
He claimed that his company was competent and efficient enough to handle the job, and said that delivery staff would be increased.
An official in the GPO, Orangi Town, said that as compare to the 16 employees of a private company, there were 23 postmen in the GPO who were visiting every nook and corner of the town on a daily basis.
An official at the Baldia Post Office, on condition of anonymity, stated that post offices were receiving all utility bills but the staff members were given no incentives.
