Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited?s (BSNL) GSM line tender has hit a hurdle. The operator had awarded contracts to ZTE, Huawei and Alcatel for the expansion of its 2G and 3G networks in May this year.
Worth Rs 14.37 million, the contracts had been awarded for all of its circles, barring Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.
The scope of the contract included planning, financing, engineering, supply, installation, testing, commissioning and annual maintenance.
Now, the Telecom Equipment Manufacturer’s Association (TEMA) has alleged that overseas equipment vendors like ZTE have bent the clauses in the tender to their benefit. TEMA has sent a written correspondence to R. Chandrashekhar, secretary, Department of Telecommunications (DoT) in this context, say news reports.
The correspondence stated, “One of the clause of the tender relating to bidders eligibility and qualification states that ‘if any type product exists, the same shall be offered’. This clause put in by BSNL with the right intent is circumvented by the foreign bidders by ZTE etc.?
TEMA has also said that the vendors are providing imported products instead of the equipment available indigenously and already approved by the operator. Further, it has stated that these companies are obtaining price quotes from domestic vendors and are using it to their advantage.
