Bangladesh is to slash by nearly a half the fee for new telephone connections from the state-run telecoms authority, officials said Wednesday.

The decision to reduce the fee charged by the Bangladesh Telegraph and Telephone Board (BTTB) from 18,400 taka (317 dollars) to 10,000 taka was taken late Tuesday at a pre-budget meeting of the cabinet committee headed by Finance and Planning Minister Saifur Rahman.

No date has been fixed for the introduction of the new fee. The Daily Star newspaper reported the charge could be later reduced further to 6,000 taka.

Last week Rahman said the fee charged by BTTB was exorbitant and indicated the government was contemplating reducing it.

Earlier this year BTTB reduced the cost of international telephone calls by up to 40 percent.

BTTB has a monopoly on fixed line facilities and has 600,000 subscribers nationwide, but is facing tough competition from privately-owned mobile telephone operators.