KOLKATA: Homegrown telecom gear and optic fibre cable makers Himachal Futuristic Communications (HFCL) and Sterlite Technologies have emerged the lowest (L1) bidders for supplying nearly Rs 13,000 crore of equipment to Bharat Sanchar Nigam ( BSNL), which is building a mega communications network for the armed forces.
HFCL has put in price bids, aggregating Rs 4,224 crore for supplying optical transmission devices (Rs 1,448 crore) and geographical information-based network management systems (Rs 2,776 crore), while Sterlite Technologies has put in price bids aggregating Rs 8,400 crore for supplying core IP gear to BSNL, two people with direct knowledge of the matter told ET.