BSNL’s Rs 6,683 cr GSM contract

Amidst heightened tension at the Indo-China border, an important revelation by a senior officer of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL), who did not want to be identified, should be a cause of worry for the Indian government especially the defence ministry and intelligence agencies. The well-placed credible source says that ZTE, a Chinese telecom contractor in BSNL’s recently concluded tender for mobile services, kept the prices deliberately high so that they could get BSNL’s order for two border sensitive zones – East and North. This includes Sikkim also. As per the tender conditions, the lowest bidder was to get order for the other two zones – West and South.