Govt to earn Tk 140cr from mobile surcharge

The government has decided to impose a one percent surcharge on cellphone use in a bid earn Tk 140 crore revenue annually.

Cabinet Secretary Muhammad Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan disclosed the calculation to the reporters after a Cabinet meeting on Monday.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina presided over the regular cabinet meeting. Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan said the proposal to impose a one-percent surcharge on services available through a SIM or RIM card provided by mobile phone operators has been approved in the meeting.

The Cabinet Secretary said a cellphone user spends average Tk 200 in every month. Now he has to pay Tk 2 as surcharge. A total of Tk 140 crore will be collected as revenue annually by the charge.

The users have to pay the surcharge after issuing a gazette notification, in this regard. Earlier on June 29, Hasina had told Parliamen that the funds raised from this surcharge will be spent on education and health.