New Delhi: Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd's (BSNL) tender for 4G upgrade has been cancelled after the Department of Telecom (DoT) asked the state-run firm not to use Chinese telecom gear, according to a source.
The source privy to the development said that a new tender will be floated which will have emphasis on preference to Make in India.
BSNL Chairman could not be reached for comments despite repeated attempts.
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The source said that the government had told BSNL not to use Chinese equipment in 4G upgrade, and that implementation of the direction meant that the company had to issue a new tender.
In an update as per sources, Department of Telecommunications(DoT) has set up a 6 member committee to decide on tender specifications to upgrade BSNL and MTNL networks. This 6 member committee is headed by Senior official from Department of Telecommunication, has one representative from BSNL and MTNL each, one industry representative and two independent experts.
The fresh tender will be issued after submission of report by this committee keeping in view the developing Indian capacity and in-house technology.
(With Inputs from PTI)