Jazz Dominates PTA’s Q2 QoS Survey Across Pakistani Cities
September 20, 2026
PTA has ordered mobile network operators to eliminate coverage gaps across Rawalpindi and Islamabad by October, with new site installations, 5G spectrum deployment, and penalties for non-compliance.
Pakistan’s telecom regulator has run out of patience. The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has formally directed all mobile network operators to resolve coverage gaps across Rawalpindi and Islamabad by October 2026, setting one of its most time-bound and enforceable network improvement mandates in recent memory.
The directive covers a sweeping geographic scope. Operators have been instructed to ensure adequate mobile network coverage across all sectors and surrounding areas of Islamabad, all parts of Rawalpindi, and along key arterial corridors including Kashmir Highway and Islamabad Expressway, two of the capital region’s most heavily trafficked routes where signal quality complaints have persisted for years.
To close the coverage gaps, PTA has instructed operators to install new mobile sites wherever required and to deploy new sites alongside the rollout of new 5G spectrum bands, effectively tying network expansion to Pakistan’s ongoing 5G transition.
The pairing of conventional site installation with 5G spectrum rollout is significant: it signals that the regulator expects the coverage improvement exercise to be future-proofed, not patched with temporary solutions.
The authority has also committed to active monitoring. PTA teams are scheduled to conduct field visits across Rawalpindi and Islamabad next week to assess mobile network performance and identify specific coverage deficiencies before the October deadline. Operators that fail to demonstrate measurable improvement in service quality could face financial penalties.
The October deadline arrives in the context of a Q2 2026 Quality of Service survey published by PTA just one day prior, which revealed that Zong dominated overall network performance rankings in the quarter. The survey findings, combined with the new coverage directive, paint a picture of a regulator moving from passive measurement to active enforcement across the capital region.
For millions of residents and daily commuters in Rawalpindi and Islamabad, dropped calls, dead zones in residential sectors, and patchy data connectivity have been a persistent frustration. The PTA’s October ultimatum now places a formal, publicly stated deadline on operators to fix problems that users have long reported through the regulator’s own complaint mechanisms.
Whether operators can mobilise site acquisition, construction, and commissioning within weeks will be the practical test of an industry that has sometimes moved more quickly when pushed by regulatory deadlines than by market competition alone.
