BSNL to order additional 16 million GSM lines

New Delhi: BSNL has received government directions to place orders for deploying 32 million GSM lines. Now it can give contracts for an additional 16 million lines once the initial phase is completed.

The company can order an additional 50 per cent - or 16 million lines - once Ericsson, Nokia and Alcatel-ITI have deployed these 32 million connections.

BSNL need not seek telecom minister A Raja's directions for the new connections, official sources said.

Any decision in this regard can only be taken by the PSU's Board. In the current scenario as Raja wanted to give a direction the board had to go by it, the sources said.

But this does not curtail the Board's freedom and after the current expansion, it can place up to 50 per cent additional lines with the same vendors as per the tender.

These 32 million lines give BSNL a breathing time of 16 months going by two million additions per month, they said.

In fact, Raja in a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said: "BSNL will analyse growth requirements and start the process of floating another tender for estimated requirements for next three years so that the next purchase order is issued prior to lines provided under the present tender are exhausted."

The company has already sent an advanced purchase order to Swedish equipment supplier Ericsson and is also likely to place orders with Nokia-Siemens for a total of 14 million lines in the first stage.

The remaining part of nine million lines contract would be awarded later. BSNL would also give a contract to Alcatel-ITI for another nine million lines.