ISLAMABAD: In a bid to curb the proliferation of illegal Indian direct-to-home (DTH) decoders, the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) held a ceremony to destroy more than 200 confiscated decoders at its regional office in Karachi..

The decoders were confiscated in crackdowns against cable television operators in Karachi, Hyderabad and Sukkur, a press release issued on Tuesday said.

In an on-going drive over the past four months, Pemra enforcement teams have confiscated and destroyed nearly 3,000 DTH decoders across the country. Ceremonies to destroy the equipment were held in Islamabad, Karachi and Lahore.

Pemra Regional General Manager in Sindh Muhammad Farooq in a press briefing said that the crackdown has been launched against cable TV operators providing cable TV services using signals of illegal Indian DTH in violation of Pemra laws.

The illegal DTH decoders are used to distribute illegal and unlicensed channels in Pakistan, in violation of Pemra regulations.

Pemra has shown interest in regulating the DTH industry in order to bring it into the tax net, but has faced delays since 2004.