MCMC: 244 telecommunication towers to be built in Pahang by year's end

LIPIS: The ongoing construction of 244 telecommunication towers to provide Internet access to users in Pahang is expected to be fully completed before the end of this year, says the Malaysian Communication and Multimedia Commission (MCMC).

Pahang MCMC director Mohd Faisal Md Nor said the construction of the towers was one of the four major projects carried out through the implementation of the National Digital Network (Jendela) Phase One (2020-2022), which is expected to complete in December.

He said that since the start of the implementation of Jendela in August 2020, MCMC had successfully erected 26 towers, including in rural areas such as Lipis.

"The construction work is in full swing and we are optimistic that the target to complete all the towers within the stipulated period can be achieved as the state government has also been supporting and facilitating matters in terms of approval for site acquisition and land use,” he told Bernama and RTM recently.

Apart from that, he said 867 or 96% of the 902 transmission stations had also been upgraded with a 4G network, while the rest were expected to be fully upgraded soon.

Faisal said the network at 75,653 premises had been upgraded to a fibre-optic network so far from the total of 118,260 premises targeted for Pahang under the Jendela Phase One, while the provision of satellite broadband internet services at 69 Orang Asli villages in the state had also been completed, allowing them to enjoy the collective internet service for free.

"The implementation of these projects has succeeded in boosting the 4G coverage rate in Pahang from 89.1% in the second quarter of 2020, before Jendela started, to 92.56% in the fourth quarter of 2021.

"We believe that the 4G coverage rate will continue to be increased when all the ongoing projects are fully completed by end of 2022,” he said.

Meanwhile, Faisal also shared the challenges faced by the MCMC in implementing Jendela in Pahang, such as the hilly terrain and the geographical area of the state.

"Besides, we already have two towers in Pos Lemoi and Kampung Telimau in Cameron Highlands which were completed last year but yet to be activated as the fibre-optic installation could not be completed following the frequent landslides due to heavy rain.

"So far, more than three landslides have occurred with the latest last week during which the road to the tower location was cut off, causing disruption to the fibre optic installation work,” he said.

In the meantime, Faisal encouraged the public to use the Jendela Map portal developed by the MCMC to check and channel their feedback related to the communication service coverage at their respective locations.

He said the portal was available at jendela.my or as a mobile application which can be downloaded from the Google Playstore or Apple Store. - Bernama