PTA Issued 5 Show-Cause Notices to Mobile Operators in 3 Months, Fines Stuck in Court
PTA told a National Assembly committee it issued 5 show-cause notices to mobile operators over poor internet in 3 months, but stay orders froze the fines.
PTA has issued five show-cause notices to mobile operators over poor service in the last three months, but it has not collected the fines, because the operators went to court and got stay orders. The chairman of the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) told this to the National Assembly Standing Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunication on 3 November 2026.
We read the National Assembly's own press release for the meeting on 4 November 2026. It says the committee was seriously concerned about poor internet quality across Pakistan, including in Karachi and Islamabad. Members raised frequent drops on WhatsApp calls and said service in some remote districts is almost negligible.
Five show-cause notices in three months, and no fine recovered yet
The PTA chairman said five show-cause notices went to telecom operators in the three months before the meeting. Recovery of the amounts imposed is pending because the operators obtained court stay orders. A stay order pauses a penalty until a court decides the case.
A show-cause notice is a formal letter. It asks a company to explain why it should not be penalised. If the reply does not satisfy the regulator, a fine can follow. The press release does not name the five operators, and it does not give the size of any fine. We could not find either detail on PTA's own website on 4 November 2026.
| What was said on 3 November 2026 | Detail from the National Assembly release |
|---|---|
| Show-cause notices issued | 5, in the preceding three months |
| Fines recovered | Pending, operators got court stay orders |
| Time given to fix quality | 3 months after PTA finds a problem |
| Power cuts in rural areas | 12 to 16 hours a day in some places |
| Towers upgraded for 5G | About 2,300 |
| 5G rollout in Karachi | About 70 per cent |
| Operators named | None in the release |
PTA's process runs from survey to notice in about three months
The chairman described a set order of steps. PTA surveys an area first. If quality is below standard, the operator gets three months to improve. If a later survey shows no change, a show-cause notice follows.
- PTA runs a quality of service survey in a city, district or rural area.
- Where it finds shortcomings, it tells the operator concerned to improve.
- The operator gets three months to fix the problem.
- PTA surveys the same area again.
- If there is no improvement, PTA issues a show-cause notice.
- A penalty can follow. If the operator gets a court stay, recovery stops until the case is decided.
This matches what PTA has said in its own press releases in October. It ran a week of field checks in six areas from 8 to 14 October and gave operators deadlines to fix coverage, voice and internet problems. The step from survey to notice is where the five notices came from, according to the chairman.
PTA's latest press release, dated 30 October 2026, says it inspected 184 mobile sites from 22 to 28 October, taking the total checked to over 900. The areas included Nankana Sahib, Rahim Yar Khan, Quetta, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Swat, Mirpur, Kotli, Gilgit, Torghar, South Karachi, Shaheed Benazirabad and rural Arifwala. PTA listed power supply and backup problems, battery and generator faults, equipment shortfalls and fibre cable safety among its findings.
Committee members said WhatsApp calls keep dropping, even in big cities
The committee said internet quality has not reached the required standard, despite two years of its own efforts on the issue. It named Karachi and Islamabad as cities with connectivity and quality problems. It also said service in smaller cities and remote districts is, in some areas, almost negligible.
WhatsApp calls were the example members raised most directly. A WhatsApp call runs on mobile data, not on the normal voice network. So a weak or overloaded data connection shows up first as a call that freezes or cuts off, even when ordinary calls still work.
The committee is chaired by Syed Amin ul Haq, MNA. This was its 25th meeting, held at 2 pm in Committee Room 7, Parliament House, Islamabad.
Load-shedding of 12 to 16 hours is shutting down towers
The PTA chairman named power cuts as one of the main causes of poor service. He said some rural areas go without electricity for 12 to 16 hours a day. When a tower's battery or generator runs out, the tower stops working and internet in that area drops.
PTA began checking towers' backup power in late September, according to its own press release of 25 September 2026. The point of those checks is simple: a tower with weak batteries fails during load-shedding, and every phone around it loses signal.
The chairman also said that after the 5G spectrum auction, about 2,300 towers have been upgraded for 5G, and roughly 70 per cent of 5G services in Karachi have been rolled out. We cover that part of the briefing in our story on 5G progress in Karachi.
What you can do now if your mobile internet is poor
A show-cause notice does not fix your connection. Your own complaint is still the fastest route. Complain to your operator first, keep the complaint number, then go to PTA if nothing changes. PTA also uses consumer complaints to decide where to survey.
- Write down the details. Note the area, the time of day, and what fails: calls, data, or WhatsApp calls only.
- Run a speed test. Do it at the same place two or three times and save screenshots.
- Complain to your operator. Ask for a complaint reference number.
- Escalate to PTA. If the operator does not fix it, use PTA's complaint portal and quote the operator's reference.
Our guide on complaining to PTA about slow or dead internet walks through the PTA portal. To see the speed and call quality your network is required to meet, read PTA's quality standards for mobile networks.
The committee also deferred the Electronic Transactions Amendment Bill
The same meeting took up the Electronic Transactions Amendment Bill, 2026. The Ministry of Law and Justice asked the committee to defer it while consultations with the Pakistan Peoples Party continue. The committee agreed to take it up at its next meeting.
The Pakistan Digital Authority also briefed members on its National Digital Master Plan. It said digital change could add USD 60 to 80 billion to Pakistan's GDP over five years. That is the authority's own estimate.
Common questions
How many show-cause notices has PTA issued to mobile operators?
Five in the three months before 3 November 2026, according to what the PTA chairman told the National Assembly committee. The release does not say which operators received them.
Why has PTA not collected the fines?
The operators went to court and obtained stay orders. A stay order stops recovery until the court decides, so the amounts remain pending.
How long does PTA give an operator to fix poor service?
Three months from when PTA identifies the problem in a survey. If a later survey shows no improvement, PTA can issue a show-cause notice.
Why do WhatsApp calls drop more than normal calls?
WhatsApp calls use mobile data. If the data connection is weak or busy, the call freezes or cuts off, even when the normal voice network still connects.
Can I complain to PTA directly about slow internet?
Yes, but complain to your operator first and keep the reference number. PTA's complaint portal then lets you escalate the same issue.
How we verified this
What we checked, where we read it, and what we could not confirm.
Last checked on 4 November 2026. The show-cause figure, the stay orders, the three-month process, the 12 to 16 hour power cuts, the 2,300 towers and the 70 per cent Karachi figure all come from the National Assembly of Pakistan's press release "Standing Committee on Information Technology & Telecommunication meets", 3 November 2026. These are statements made to the committee, not published PTA decisions. The 184 site figures are from PTA's press release of 30 October 2026, "PTA Intensifies Nationwide Field Monitoring". We checked PTA's press releases on 4 November 2026 and found no release on the five notices, so the operators' names and the fine amounts remain unconfirmed.
About the author
Technology Journalist & Multimedia Producer
Ahmad Ali is a technology journalist and multimedia producer at Pakistan Era, joining the team in October 2026. He covers consumer technology and digital life for Pakistani readers, combining research with hands-on product testing.
