PMO calls meeting to revisit telecom security aspects

The Department of Telecommunications (DOT),vide its March 18 order,exempted all passive equipment and equipment/software developed in India by Indian owned or controlled manufacturers from security clearance.

It also stipulated that operation and maintenance of telecom networks should be entirely by Indian engineers and dependence on foreign engineers should be minimal or almost nil.

Sources said the related issue that would come up for consideration is Chinese telecom equipment provider Huaweis offer to set up a manufacturing facility in Chennai to immediately overcome the Indian blockade of nearly $150-million worth of orders with state-run and private telecom service providers.

Huawei is willing to restructure its management team and board of directors with Indians provided the government allows its blocked orders to resume.

Though the Telecom Ministry says that there is no ban on import of telecom equipment and networks from Chinese firms,last November it wrote to state-run Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd not to procure Chinese equipment for sensitive areas in North and North-East India that were co-terminus with China.

India is the second-largest market outside China for Chinese firms ZTE and Huawei. All new licensees,as well as the existing ones,are depending on cheap Chinese equipment to start their networks. But the government wants the service provider to get technology transfer from the equipment vendor within three years of placing the purchase order.