Even as BSNL is yet to overcome the controversy surrounding its mega-GSM tender another controversy seems to be knocking the doors of the PSU with cable manufacturers now alleging that the tender norms favour certain players.

BSNL has floated a tender towards laying a optical fibre network as part of the MoU reached between the DoT and the Ministry of Defence.

One of the conditions laid down by BSNL includes participating companies to have rolled out 20,000 km of optical cable network to telecom service providers. Cable manufacturers say that optical fibre network is also rolled by non-telecom companies such as Railways.

Paramount in particular has asked BSNL to review the conditions. “We would like to bring to your notice that the eligibility conditions mentioned in the notice inviting tender are highly questionable. As you know, there are 14-15 optical fibre cable manufacturers in India and only two-three vendors are eligible as per the NIT conditions which restricts a healthy competition and a cartel formation may not be ruled out. The rest of the companies that have been regularly participating and supplying OFC to BSNL and other operators will be ineligible to bid because of the arbitrarily prescribed eligibility conditions,” says Paramount Cable.

BSNL”s tender conditions also require the participating cable manufacturing company to own a manufacturing facility. This goes against HFCL which sources cables from foreign players such as Corning and Fujikiura.

The BSNL contract is worth Rs 10,000 crore.

The Defence wants BSNL to fasten the pace of work towards implanting the optical network. The laying down of the network on time is very important as the Defence will vacate 3G spectrum for commercial use only after setting up of the optical network.