Public procurement standards: 5G products will be included after improvements in local manufacturing – Technology News

The government will include 5G products in the Make in India public procurement policy after there is an improvement in the domestic manufacturing capacity of these products in the country, according to a notification published in the department of telecommunications (DoT) gazette.

Public procurement standards contain local value addition or local content requirements for companies to be considered eligible for government tenders, which includes procurement by public sector companies, departments of central ministries, etc. The order contains up to 36 telecommunications products such as routers, Ethernet switches, media gateways, customer premises equipment, GPON equipment, etc.

In a bid to boost locally developed players, the government has increased the minimum local content from over 50% for suppliers of certain products to 65%.

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“It is noted that 5G products with indigenous technology are currently being tested in the country. Table A will be reviewed periodically and addition of 5G products/virtual routers will be considered based on manufacturing capacity,” DoT said in the gazette notification.

Table A of the document contains a list of products with a minimum percentage of local content.

“Domestic manufacturers and their associations are encouraged to proactively provide evidence of manufacturing capability from time to time to DoT to enable inclusion of such products,” the notification added.

In the draft version, the DoT did not include 5G products as part of the public procurement policy.

“We are grateful that the government has recognized that testing of 5G equipment is underway in the country. To boost production of such equipment, more market access should be given to local companies,” said Rakesh Bhatnagar, managing director of VoICE, which represents domestic equipment players.

According to Bhatnagar, disconnected villages, BSNL’s private network and continuous network deployment are a huge opportunity to encourage manufacturing of 5G products.

“The fact that indigenous 5G products are currently being tested is a testament to India’s rapidly advancing capabilities. By encouraging domestic manufacturers to provide proof of their capabilities and periodically reviewing the inclusion of 5G and virtual routers, India is ensuring it remains competitive on a global scale,” said Paritosh Prajapati, CEO, GX Group.

According to Prajapati, the government’s effort to promote domestic production and ensure that local producers are included in critical infrastructure projects positions India as a telecommunications manufacturing hub for the world.

According to the notification, bidders offering imported products will fall under the category of non-local suppliers. These companies cannot claim themselves as Class I local suppliers/Class II local suppliers, claiming services like transportation, insurance, installation, commissioning, training and after-sales service support as local value addition, the notification said.

For startups registered by the Department of

Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, the condition of previous business volume and experience can be relaxed as long as they meet the necessary technical and quality specifications.

Following the notification, the government has classified telecom manufacturers who are beneficiaries of the telecom production-linked incentive scheme as deemed Class II local suppliers for the specified products and up to the specified period.