Banking News – Minister for Information and Communications Dr. Bikram Timilsina has directed the concerned agencies to immediately address issues affecting the reach and quality of Nepal Telecom’s services and to ensure a reliable electricity supply to all telecom towers wherever feasible.

The directive was issued during an inter-agency meeting held at the Ministry of Information and Communications on Wednesday. The meeting was attended by Nepal Telecom Managing Director Sangita Pahadi, Rajan Dhakal, Chief of the Distribution and Customer Service Directorate at the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA), Nawaraj Dhakal, Executive Director of the Alternative Energy Promotion Centre (AEPC), and other senior officials.

The discussion focused on service disruptions in telephone and internet connectivity across various parts of the country caused by unreliable electricity supply to Nepal Telecom’s Base Transceiver Stations (BTS), telecom towers, and other telecommunications infrastructure.

During the meeting, Minister Timilsina emphasized that providing reliable and high-quality telecommunications services is the government’s responsibility. He instructed the agencies to move beyond identifying problems and focus on delivering practical, result-oriented solutions.

He also directed Nepal Telecom, the Nepal Electricity Authority, and the Alternative Energy Promotion Centre to establish a permanent coordination mechanism by forming a joint working group with a clear action plan to expand electricity access to telecom towers.

“Many of the current challenges stem from weak inter-agency coordination in the past. Going forward, each agency should designate a focal person to ensure regular coordination. The ministry stands ready to provide the necessary policy-level support,” Minister Timilsina said.

The minister further stated that both the Ministry of Information and Communications and the Ministry of Energy are committed to extending the national power grid to all Nepal Telecom towers wherever possible. He instructed Nepal Telecom to provide the Nepal Electricity Authority with detailed data on locations where telecom towers still lack electricity so that power expansion projects can be prioritized accordingly.