The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has directed mobile phone users to register their cellular devices with the authority.

In a text message sent to mobile phone users, PTA has warned that non-compliant devices will not work after October 20.

To register your cellular device, you have to send your IMEI number via SMS to 8484. You can check your IMEI number by dialing *#06#.

In response, PTA will send a reply confirming whether your phone is compliant. 

Earlier, Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry on Thursday announced that the government has decided to crack down against smugglers of mobile phones in Pakistan.

In a press conference following a cabinet meeting in the federal capital, Chaudhry said the government has devised a framework to block illegal imports of mobile phones by the end of this year. “By this year’s end, [all] smuggled phones in the country will stop being operational,” he said.

According to statistics released by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), the number of mobile phone users in the country reached 151 million by July 2018. The number of mobile broadband subscribers was around 60 million during the same period.