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State-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) is exploring the possibility of extending the validity of its 4G tender for telecom equipment, which has raked up a controversy, to May 25.
The tender floated on March 23 had a month’s validity, and one reason for the extension is the lacklustre response. More importantly, more time is required for bidders as the tender is now being scrutinised by the Ministry of Commerce, following allegations that it favours multinational companies, a source close to the development told BusinessLine .
However, certain reports stated that the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has asked the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) to put on hold the tender. A final decision on this is not yet taken, the source added.
Earlier in April, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) had pulled up BSNL for the terms and conditions in the tender, which the domestic manufacturers alleged disqualified them from making bids.
Further, they had also accused BSNL of favouring global players with restrictive conditions. The contract, valued at about Rs 9,000 crore, included upgradation of 50,000 sites across the country to offer high-speed Internet services. This project is crucial as BSNL is already four years behind private telecom companies such as Reliance Jio Infocom and Bharti Airtel in launching 4G services.
Unions oppose
Separately, All Unions and Associations of BSNL (AUAB) has sought the Prime Minister’s intervention to ensure that the authorities examine the issue in a time-bound manner and allow it to go ahead with the 4G tendering process.
AUAB said the Telecom Equipment and Services Export Promotion Council (TEPC), an industry body, has complained to the Department of Commerce that the tendering process has flouted the Government of India’s Make in India policy and was heavily in favour of multinational companies.
“To our knowledge, none of the Indian suppliers manufacture 4G equipment. In the name of Make in India, they are trying to stop the tender, which is a lifeline for BSNL,” the AUAB letter, a copy of which was reviewed by BusinessLine , said.
The umbrella organisation of BSNL trade unions and associations said it suspected some operators to benefit from stopping the tender.
Private operators
All the private operators such as Reliance Jio, Airtel and Vodafone Idea procure their 4G equipment from multinational firms such as Nokia, Ericsson, ZTE, Huaweii and Samsung.
When BSNL’s competitors are procuring 4G equipment from experienced vendors with proven technology, why should BSNL alone be compelled to procure sub-standard equipment, it asked.
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