NTA to implement Mobile Device Management System from September 16

KATHMANDU: The mobile device management system MDMS, which has been in discussion for a few years, has been put forward by the Nepal Telecommunication Authority with a fresh plan to implement it after September 16.

The telecommunication sector regulator says that MDMS will be especially useful to prevent unauthorized import or transportation of mobile phones.

However, this rule is not new. Last year too, it was supposed to be implemented from July 1, but it did not happen due to various technical reasons. However, NTA had started such an effort since he introduced detailed regulations in this regard in 2018.

Purushottam Khanal,  chairman of NTA, says, “At that time, there was an outbreak of Covid-19. And there was a shortage of telecommunication chips all over the world. We could not implement it due to various reasons. This year, MDMS will be implemented.”

According to him, the MDMS system will be implemented on September 16.

After that, in the case of mobile phones already registered in the authority’s system, operations will continue as usual, while unauthorized imported or brought from abroad by relatives but not registered mobile phones may fall under the new rules.

“It is not our intention to disconnect any user. An SMS will be sent to unregistered mobiles after August 30 and they will have to register accordingly,”  he said.

“Phones coming from open borders improperly or phones brought by relatives may not be registered. SMS is sent to register for that. It should be registered within six months,” said Khanal.

“But in the case of new mobile phones coming in after September 16, they will not be allowed to operate if they are not registered.”

It is said that the IMEI number of the phone can be registered by going to the authority’s website.

If the MDMS system is implemented in Nepal, businessmen have been saying that it will benefit the government’s revenue as there will be less income from evasion and non-payment of taxes.

Currently, excise duty and value added tax are levied based on the price of the phone.

According to Deepak Malhotra, President of the Mobile Phone Importers’ Association, mobile phones worth 50 billion rupees are imported into Nepal annually, but 35 billion worth mobile phones are imported illegally.

However, there is no restriction on bringing a mobile phone when coming from abroad.

Mobile is becoming the first choice in the cheese business for those who have friends and relatives outside.

Khanal, says, “We did not want to make them contactless. But they had to be registered in a proper way when bringing them.”

“A phone brought by someone for a friend or relative is not a headache for us. But here it has been found that some people collect the phone at the airport outside and take it here. That is why MDMS is necessary,” said Malhotra.

He said that in the case of tourists, a system can be made to allow them to use the mobile phones they carry for a month after they arrive here and only then ask for registration.