PSU telecom consultant blacklists Cisco for two years over alleged unfair practices

Public sector telecommunications consultant TCIL has blacklisted global technology major Cisco for a period of two years, barring it from participating in any future tenders floated by the PSU.TCIL has alleged that Cisco indulged in unfair, illegal and monopolistic practices that adversely impacted a recent government bidding process.According to TCIL, Cisco sabotaged its bid for a tender floated by the Karnataka government by introducing last-minute conditions and creating hurdles that undermined TCIL’s participation. The PSU has claimed that these actions were aimed at securing unlawful commercial gains for Cisco.The controversy centres on tender reference CEG/2025-26/IND0043 and its subsequent re-issue, which has drawn criticism over alleged manipulation of the bidding process to create a de facto single-vendor scenario, according to a report by The New Indian Express published on Friday.The tender pertains to the Karnataka State Wide Area Network (KSWAN) project, a key initiative to provide secure and reliable network connectivity across government offices in the state, with preparatory work having begun in 2022.As per the report, the Centre for e-Governance (CeG) had initially framed the Request for Proposal (RFP) to support a multi-OEM architecture and a conventional routing-based network design, in line with industry standards.The tender, floated on July 11, 2025, received bids from RailTel, Orange and TCIL, with Cisco and Juniper participating as OEMs. However, despite three bids being submitted, authorities reportedly opened only the pre-qualification documents and later cancelled the tender, citing ‘improper’ submissions.CeG later constituted a technical committee, claiming the earlier specifications were ‘outdated’, following which the revised tender was issued on December 8, 2025, the report said.In a statement, Cisco said it abides by applicable local laws and regulations in all the markets it operates in and maintains intentionally high standards under its Code of Business Conduct. The company said it continues to engage with Telecommunications Consultants India Ltd on the matter and remains focused on delivering industry-leading products and services to customers across India.(Edited by : Ajay Vaishnav)First Published: Jan 16, 2026 9:00 PM IST

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