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NA panel raps telecom firms over slow internet | The Express Tribune
Orders PTA to launch nationwide quality survey, urges fast-tracked contracts, adherence to timelines for IT Parks
ISLAMABAD:
The National Assembly Standing Committee on IT & Telecom on Tuesday expressed concern over the country’s slow internet performance and reprimanded telecom operators for failing to meet service expectations.
The Committee directed the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to conduct comprehensive nationwide surveys and take immediate, practical steps to improve the quality and coverage of internet services across the country.
Chairman Syed Aminul Haq instructed the PTA to carry out special surveys, adding that Committee members would assess internet service quality themselves. He ordered that a detailed report be presented at the Committee’s next meeting.
While briefing the Committee, PTA officials said that 273 MHz of spectrum was currently available in the country, but it remained insufficient to meet growing internet demand. They added that the government planned to sell 600 MHz of spectrum across various bands and that the process was now moving toward the auction of 5G.
Reviewing progress on the Islamabad IT Park project, the Committee was informed that the consultant’s contract had expired on October 31. The contractor has begun the renewal process, which is expected to be finalised shortly. The Committee reiterated the prime minister’s timeline to complete the project by December 31, 2025.
Regarding the Karachi IT Park, the Committee noted that the project was in its initial stages and that the contract was expected to be awarded soon. A delegation from Korea is scheduled to visit on December 2, 2025, to finalise outstanding matters related to the contract. The Committee directed that the award be expedited to ensure work begins without delay and stressed that the project must be completed within the stipulated two-year period.
The managing director of the National Telecommunication Corporation (NTC) briefed the Committee on future initiatives, including plans to provide secure mobile connectivity for government officials and establish new data centres in Karachi and Quetta.
The Committee was told these initiatives form part of the NTC’s broader strategic plan to strengthen cybersecurity and expand reliable IT and telecom services for public-sector institutions. Members appreciated the NTC’s performance and acknowledged that its ongoing projects were satisfactory.
However, the Committee advised the NTC to avoid downsizing and instead adopt a rightsizing approach, ensuring no employee is laid off and staff are placed where their services are genuinely required.
The Committee decided to defer “The Prevention of Obscenity and Indecency in Digital Media Bill, 2025” to its next meeting due to the mover’s absence.
New Delhi: Equity mutual fund (MF) inflows stood at Rs 28,054 crore in the month of December as systematic investment plans (SIPs) scaled a fresh record high last month, according to the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) data released on Friday.
The monthly mutual fund SIP inflows reached a new record high in December at Rs 31,002 crore, compared to Rs 29,445 crore in November. The SIP investments rose by 5 per cent and 17 per cent on a monthly and yearly basis, respectively.
Gold ETFs also registered strong inflows of Rs 11,647 crore in December, higher than Rs 3,742 crore in November, showed the AMFI data.
Flexi-cap funds witnessed a sharp pickup in inflows, reflecting investor preference for strategies that offer allocation flexibility across market capitalisations amid evolving market conditions.
The mutual fund industry reported an overall net outflows of Rs 66,571 crore in December. Hybrid schemes attracted inflows of Rs 10,756 crore, while ‘other schemes’, including ETFs, saw net inflows of Rs 26,723 crore.
Overall, the flow trend suggests that equity participation remains structurally intact, but investors are becoming more discerning, with greater emphasis on portfolio balance, diversification, and risk management rather than broad-based risk-taking, said Himanshu Srivastava, Principal Manager Research, Morningstar Investment Research India.
Flows remained resilient despite intermittent market volatility, supported by steady SIP contributions and continued confidence in India’s long-term growth outlook, he added.
Amid rising participation from Gen Z, women and households from smaller cities and towns, India’s mutual fund industry, especially the SIPs, are set to witness robust growth in 2026.
Investors have poured over Rs 3 lakh crore into mutual fund schemes through systematic investment plans until November, for the first time in a calendar year. The data from AMFI showed earlier that SIP inflows in the calendar year touched Rs 3.04 trillion (lakh crore) for the first time, up from Rs 2.69 trillion in 2024.
SIPs have emerged as one of the strongest and most reliable engines of growth for the Indian mutual fund industry. Sustained net inflows, strong market performance, and deepening retail participation, aided by digitisation and financialisation of savings, have contributed to the steady surge in AUM, according to ICRA Analytics. India’s mutual fund industry’s assets under management (AUM) may surpass Rs 300 trillion by 2035, it added.
Business
Bought 3BHK Flat Without Any Fancy Job Or Inheritance; CA Explains Real-Life Story Of Surat Man
New Delhi: Chartered accountant Nitin Kaushik recently posted on X the real-life story of a person who purchased a 3BHK apartment in Surat for Rs 55 lakhs without an inheritance or fancy career but with consistent discipline.
Kaushik said that he had recently met a person who despite not belonging to any privileged background, recently bought a 3BHK apartment in Surat for Rs 55 lakhs. Kaushik said this man’s simple story will “change your view on wealth”.
How a Simple Story Change your View on “Wealth”
A few weeks ago, I met someone-not from a privileged background-who recently bought a 3BHK apartment in Surat worth _55 lakhs.
No inheritance, no fancy job, no startup exit-just steady discipline.___#stockmarket_ pic.twitter.com/WBBgtGGyx3
— CA Nitin Kaushik (FCA) | LLB (@Finance_Bareek) January 7, 2026
When Kaushik asked the person how he managed the purchase of the home the person said that he had saved Rs 45 lakhs over 12 years and took a home loan of Rs 10 lakh. “No panic about EMIs or inflation. Just quiet confidence and planning,” Kaushik said.
Kaushik said, “This was not overnight success.” The man saved consistently through recurring deposits, gold savings schemes and local real estate investments in his village near Surat. Kaushik said that consistency added with patience over 12 years is the key to the man’s success.
The person already owned a two-storey home and a small commercial shop in the village, which were both rented out. The rental inflows were roughly Rs 22,000 per month. “Every rupee saved or reinvested, building more wealth quietly,” wrote Kaushik.
According to Kaushik, the person accumulated over Rs 40 lakh through consistent saving and reinvestment, without using stocks or mutual funds. The man’s accumulation of wealth showed that “wealth is not about quick compounding but long term discipline. Many chase complex, risky strategies, but steady, patient investing builds real wealth brick by brick,” he said.
According to Kaushik, wealth develops based on how long you stick to your discipline and not how much you make. “Wealth grows by how long you hold your discipline, not just by how much you earn. Even small streams, flowing steadily, become rivers. Formula for success is Consistency × Patience × Simplicity. Anyone can start this today no matter your income level,” Kaushik said.
Last Updated:
Telecom operator Vodafone Idea on Friday laid out a detailed repayment roadmap for its adjusted gross revenue (AGR) liabilities; Know details
Vodafone Idea Share Price
Telecom operator Vodafone Idea on Friday laid out a detailed repayment roadmap for its adjusted gross revenue (AGR) liabilities, under which it will service a portion of the dues at a maximum of Rs 124 crore per year over a six-year period.
The company’s shares rose about 6% in early trade after the announcement.
In December, Reuters had reported that the Indian government approved a partial moratorium on Vodafone Idea’s dues, freezing payments of about $9.76 billion and pushing a large part of the repayment burden into the 2030s.
In its stock exchange filing, Vodafone Idea said its AGR liabilities — including principal, interest, penalty and interest on penalty for FY2006-07 to FY2018-19 — outstanding as of December 31, 2025, will be frozen and repaid in a phased manner.
As per the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) communication, the company will pay up to Rs 124 crore annually for six years from March 2026 to March 2031. This will be followed by payments of Rs 100 crore per year for four years from March 2032 to March 2035.
The balance AGR dues will then be cleared in equal annual instalments over six years from March 2036 to March 2041.
Vodafone Idea also said the DoT will constitute a committee to reassess the AGR dues, and the committee’s decision will be final. After the reassessment, the revised AGR amount will be repaid in equal annual instalments between March 2036 and March 2041.
The development is expected to remain in focus for investors, given Vodafone Idea’s stretched balance sheet and the critical role AGR relief plays in its long-term financial stability.
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January 09, 2026, 09:50 IST
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