These Four Districts are Pakistan’s Biggest Tower Theft Hotspots

Lakki Marwat, Bannu, Turbat, and Killa Abdullah have been identified as Pakistan’s highest-risk districts for telecom tower theft and vandalism, according to a Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) report submitted to the Senate Sub-Committee.

The report recorded 287 theft and vandalism incidents over the past year. Bannu accounted for 178 cases, followed by Lakki Marwat with 100, Turbat with eight, and Killa Abdullah with one.

Operator-wise, Jazz reported 110 incidents, including 50 in Bannu, 55 in Lakki Marwat, and five in Turbat. Zong reported 177 incidents, including 128 in Bannu, 45 in Lakki Marwat, three in Turbat, and one in Killa Abdullah.

According to the report, only 98 cases were officially reported, meaning around 34 percent of all incidents were registered.

The PTA report shows that fuel theft was the most common incident, with 114 cases. This was followed by 56 power theft cases, 10 cases involving theft of telecom assets and equipment, nine vandalism or militant attack incidents, and 98 minor miscellaneous incidents.

Zong reported the highest number of incidents in the identified districts, while Ufone and Telenor did not report any theft or vandalism incidents in these areas during the reference period.

The report also highlighted concerns raised by telecom operators that several incidents were not registered by the relevant local administration.

According to the document, the Senate Sub-Committee recommended selecting Lakki Marwat, Bannu, Turbat, and Killa Abdullah as pilot districts to better understand the causes of internet network degradation and repeated diesel theft from telecom towers.

The committee proposed focused enforcement measures, improved coordination among stakeholders, and stronger follow-up of First Information Reports (FIRs) to assess whether targeted interventions could improve the situation. It noted that the selected districts experienced repeated vandalism during the past year, making them suitable for targeted enforcement and evaluation of on-ground improvements.

The Senate Sub-Committee also recommended that the Ministry adopt a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) requiring telecom operators to register FIRs in every case of theft from telecom towers. It clarified that incidents where FIRs are not lodged should not be treated as theft cases.

In cases where police or other authorities do not cooperate, the committee recommended invoking Sections 200 and 22A of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), along with other relevant legal provisions, to ensure FIR registration.

According to the sub-committee, the PTA has already issued the necessary instructions to the concerned stakeholders. However, it said the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication may begin consultations to develop a detailed implementation mechanism and strengthen coordination with all relevant authorities in line with the committee’s recommendations to improve the protection of telecom infrastructure in the identified high-risk districts.