L&T wins Rs2,442 crore order from BSNL

Larsen & Toubro (L&T), India's largest engineering and construction company, has won a contract worth Rs2,442 crore from state-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) for setting up an optical fibre network. On completion, the network will be owned and operated by the defence services.

The contract was awarded to L&T Construction's power transmission and distribution business by BSNL, the project implementation agency for the ministry of defence, L&T said in a release.

''We are well-placed with a complete range of offerings, a nationwide presence and the relevant track record to execute this project to the complete satisfaction of our client. We are also very privileged to play a significant role in strengthening and modernising the network of our defence forces,'' SN Subrahmanyan, senior executive vice president (infrastructure and construction) at L&T, said.

The contract is for supply, trenching, laying, installation, testing and commissioning of optical fibre cable network that will establish optical national long distance backbone and optical access routes for the defence network. The network will be deployed with optic technology, which will form the backbone optical highway infrastructure and serve as a communication media for the defence sector.

The scope largely covers OFC routes in central and southern India. The project will be handled on a turnkey basis, and is scheduled to be completed within 18 months.

Shares in the large cap company closed up 1.40 per cent at Rs1,725.35 on a steady BSE on Tuesday.