Kathmandu, December 1 : Mobile Phone Importers Association (MPIA), Nepal has asked all mobile phone traders across the country to resist themselves from dealing with the mobile sets imported through illicit channel.
“The grey market is creating big obstacles in the professional and healthy growth of the country’s mobile phone business. Similarly, the government has been losing big amount of revenues due to such market, thus negatively affecting the entire national economy,” the Association says.
Moreover, it warns that the phones illegally imported in the country can also be used for carrying out criminal activities in the country. This is so because the International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) number of such phones is not officially registered.
“The grey market is fast emerging as a serious problem in the country from these various perspectives. As such, we appeal all the concerned mobile phone distributors to immediately stop the buying and selling of illicit mobile sets,” the Association states adding, “We will be forced to take action those not acting as per this request.”
Meanwhile, it urges the government and the general customers to do the needful in discouraging the grey market of mobile phones.
“If the customers, in particular, purchase only the mobile sets having the hologram inscribed with MPIA, it will help control the transactions of illicit mobile sets.”
Almost 40-50 percent of the sets sold in the country are said to be imported via the illicit channel.
