Kashif Choudhury -- In our country, there are about 50 car thefts reported to the police every month. Out of those, not many are recovered. But now, there is a technology available in Bangladesh that allows one to track their car no matter where they are. The idea is pretty simple. There is a GPS tracker installed in the car that transmits signals to a satellite that in turn, accurately relays the location of the car to the owner through a software provided. In addition, the tracking devices can be wired with capabilities such as shutting down the engine, locking the doors, checking fuel consumption etc. There is also 24 hour customer support provided by the companies.The four companies that have received licences from the BTRC are, Grameenphone (these people are everywhere !!), Monico Ltd, NITS Service Private Ltd and Nexdecade Technologies Ltd. These licences were handed out in June of 2009.
Now for the most important factor, Pricing. The hardware costs 12000 to 13000 takas and about 650 to 750 takas per month. This is quite reasonable because a car will typically cost three lakh to thirty lakh takas. In my opinion, this small cost incurred is a small price to pay for peace of mind and security of what is, in many cases, the most valuable asset a person has.
A number of companies and organizations have already taken the plunge and installed these devices on their vehicles. These include, Warid telecom, UNDP, Transparency International etc.
All in all, including private cars and firms, there are about 1200 cars on our streets. I would like more exposure and public awareness about this technology to be provided by the companies involved. This has the potential to reduce the number of car thefts in our country significantly and also reduce the thefts of petrol and misuse of the cars by drivers.
Comments are welcome.
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