Officials said foreign firms are reluctant to bid for the job since the authorities had cancelled tenders. Moreover, the bidding preconditions set by the BTV authorities are discouraging reputed international companies from bidding.

A senior official at the Ministry of Information told The Daily Star that the BTV authorities are killing time to prepare the tender documents. They are taking a lot of time to scrutinise each tender despite repeated instructions to expedite the move.

The official, who wished not to be named, said the government made adequate budgetary allocation for the purchase of an array of equipment and install a satellite earth station to bolster its overseas transmission.

Sources said the news studio, sound recording studio and three transmitters in Khulna, Sylhet and Natore have long been in run-down condition and run the risk of collapse. Even after their expiry long ago, the machines are still in operation.

Officials said Information Minister Tariqul Islam soon after taking office took steps to modernise the BTV and got additional funds for replacement of old equipment, purchase of latest ones and installation of satellite to improve the quality of BTV programmes.

The BTV director general at a press conference on June 26 in presence of the information minister announced a series of modernisation projects and hoped to complete most programmes by this year. Some projects including installation of satellite stations were due this month, but none of them is in sight.

The authorities initiated the process to replace the 10 transmitters across the country to improve the terrestrial transmission in phases. A tender was floated to procure three VHF (very high frequency) Band 3 Solid State Transmitters in the first phase.

But the transmitters in Khulna, Sylhet and Natore are still to be procured due to the tender complexity. The transmitters could not be purchased although bids were invited three times but the BTV 'experts' are still scrutinising the tender documents.

A high official of the ministry said the seven other transmitters also need replacements. Besides, the process to gather SNG unit to telecast news and programmes live is yet to start.

Referring to a tender published in newspapers on October 22, inviting bids for purchase of equipment for a news studio, a drama studio, a sound recording studio and eight video edit suites in the newly-constructed extension to the BTV Bhaban, officials said the preconditions of the tender might discourage both local and foreign companies to drop their bids.

They said the authorities had offered the same tender about four months ago, but no-one participated in the bids because ambitious tender was tagged with scores of preconditions.

A local representative of a foreign company that participated in the previous BTV tenders said the BTV again on October 22 invited bids without bringing any change to its previous document despite the fact that no-one participated in the previous yet similar bidding.

The representative said the latest tender stipulates that intended bidders will visit the site to get acquainted with its physical condition, the scope of the work and available workplace before dropping bids. The bidder must prepare a detailed drawing/design, equipment layout/block diagram, bill of quantity and other related information to complete the works.

But the authorities will not be liable for any cost or expense incurred by the bidders, if any, for the site visit, preparation and submission of the bids. Moreover, all bids must be accompanied by an earnest money of $80,000, the tender said.

The representative wondered who would respond to the complex tender and come over here with experts to spend such a huge amount of money without the guarantee to get the job.