Govt. Invites Proposals for Manufacturing 10 Lakh Indigenous Navigation Chips
Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY), Government of India, has invited bid proposals to design, manufacture, supply and maintain Integrated NavIC (Navigation Indian Constellation) and GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver chips. Last date for submission of proposal is 11th January 2021.
What are NavIC and GPS Navigation Systems?
Currently, the navigation and positioning system we use is GPS. GPS system provides both time and geolocation of the GPS receiver around the Globe and is maintained by United States Government agencies. The GPS system comprises of 31 geosynchronous satellites out of which 24 need to be operational at all times. It uses a single frequency band.
NavIC is the operational name given to Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) developed by ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation). NavIC has been designed to provide accurate position information service to users in India and adjoining regions (1500 Km around India). It consists of 3 geostationary satellites and 4 geosynchronous satellites, more to be added by ISRO as load increases. Also, it uses dual frequency band resulting in better efficiency.
Why Government of India is pushing NavIC based system?
The proposal currently sought for making receiver chips is for integrated GPS and NavIC receiver chips so that the users can have access to both GPS and NavIC systems, and there can be smooth transition to the indigenous IRNSS / NavIC. Integrated NavIC and GPS receiver chip will improve overall signal availability and position accuracy in urban areas or mountainous regions where due to obstructions in the form of large buildings or physical features sometimes GPS alone may not be accurate.
Major advantage that NavIC would offer (when used standalone) is non-dependency on any foreign service for positioning which is important for a sovereign nation. As it would be serving only Indian region on dual frequency band the data calculation will also be efficient. ISRO’s NavIC will also have another level of service known as Restrictive Service or RS which will be encrypted and offer higher accuracy upto 1 to 5 meters for use by defense and national security agencies.
Scope of work and Bidding Details
The successful bidder will have to design, manufacture, supply and maintain awarded quantity of Integrated NavIC and GPS receivers; and ensure deployment of Integrated NavIC and GPS receivers. Out of the total to be awarded quantity of 10 Lakh chips, MeitY reserves the right to place parallel contracts on two or more vendors/bidders based on the pricing of the lowest (L1) technically compliant offer. The development and proof of concept time given to successful bidder will be 14 months. The order will have to be completed in two years after approval of proof of concept. The Earnest Money Deposit amount is INR 1 Crore. Startup / MSMEs certified by Inter-Ministerial Board of Ministry of MSME, Government of India can participate in the process.
