LAHORE, Jan 15: Cellular phones have become cheaper than the fixed ones making achievement of the target for new connections impossible for the Pakistan Telecommunications Company Limited.

A new cell phone connection along with a new set and a battery is available for as low as Rs3,900 (used sets are even cheaper). It can be pressed into service by feeding a pre-paid card costing Rs500 or more. The minimum cost of a new mobile phone connection thus comes to Rs4,400.

The connection holder has to make calls equal to the value of the card within two months but can receive calls for six months from the date of feeding the card.

A new PTCL connection, on the other hand, costs Rs1,850 after the much publicized 50 per cent reduction in the installation charges. The price of the telephone set, if provided by the PTCL, is Rs700 in addition but is not mentioned in its advertisements. A new PTCL connection with a new telephone set thus costs Rs2,550.

The factor frustrating the PTCL efforts to achieve the new telephone connection target, and even making it lose the existing connections, is its line rent raised to Rs300 per month from Jan 1 this year.

The company could give only 24,000 new connections in Lahore from July 1 to December 31, 2001, against a target of 66,000 as the subscribers preferred to get cell phone connections instead of PTCL connection.

A cell phone subscriber can enjoy free incoming calls for six months even if he does not feed another card after the expiry of his first card after two months. But a PTCL subscriber is required to pay Rs1,800 (for six months) as line rent alone even if he does not make a single call during the period. Hardships to be experienced if the phone develops a defect are in addition.

The actual saving comes from the next six months onwards during which a cell phone can continue receiving calls on feeding a pre-paid card of Rs500 but the PTCL charges Rs1,800 as line rent alone.

The failure of the PTCL in achieving new phone connection target and losing existing connections is a simple question of economics which the PTCL high-ups are not willing to understand.