Faiz Ahmed Tayyab, Special Assistant to the Principal Advisor in charge of the Ministry of Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology, clarified the panic and confusion that had spread among general users about the shutdown of handsets used in the country after the BTRC announced the launch of the NEIR system to prevent illegal import of mobile phones. He confirmed that no mobile set currently used in the country will be shut down.

He made this information known in a post on his Facebook page on Wednesday (November 19) afternoon and urged the public to be vigilant.

Stating that no mobile phone used in the country will be shut down, he said, "I want to make one thing clear—the mobile phone you are currently using—whether it is purchased legally, illegally, or imported from abroad—will not be shut down. The fear that the current handset you are using will be shut down—is completely wrong."

He further said, 'From December 16, new handsets smuggled into the country through illegal importers will not work on the Bangladesh network. Apart from this, no phone of the general user will be switched off. You can check whether the handset you bought is legal or illegal through just an SMS from the showroom. Another thing is that anyone can bring an additional mobile phone along besides the phone they use while traveling abroad.'