The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has cancelled its tender to buy six robotic water rescue devices after learning that the shortlisted supplier was sourcing them from a Turkish firm. The decision comes at a time when tensions have increased between India and Pakistan, with Turkey being linked to drone supplies to Pakistan.
As per the reports, the tender was issued in September last year. Shortlisting of bidders took place between January and February this year. Each bidder had shared vendor details in their quotation. At that time, relations between India and Turkey were stable, so the supplier was shortlisted.
However, due to the recent geopolitical changes, the civic body decided to cancel the process and issue a fresh tender. The official confirmed that no Letter of Approval (LoA) had been granted yet. Therefore, the BMC had the legal right to withdraw the tender.
The new tender will focus on Indian manufacturers. The civic body said it wants to promote the Make in India initiative. Officials added that this step could also reduce costs.
The original plan was to purchase six remote-controlled lifebuoys for the Mumbai Fire Brigade. Each device was estimated to cost around INR 9.62 lakh. Including taxes, the total tender value was about INR 64 lakh.
The selected Indian supplier had proposed to source the equipment from Maren Robotics, a Turkish company. According to the company's website, the product is called "Maren Fasty" and is described as a remote-controlled, self-propelled water rescue vehicle.
Other civic bodies in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) have already purchased similar buoys from the same Turkish company.
These robotic rescue devices were to be deployed at beaches like Girgaon, Dadar, Juhu, Versova, Gorai, and Aksa. They were meant to assist lifeguards during water emergencies. The devices can help prevent drowning and support search and rescue efforts.
Each robotic buoy has a 10,000 mAh rechargeable battery and two water jets. They can travel up to 800 metres in the sea, carry up to 200 kilograms, and reach speeds of 18 km/h.
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