ICICI invests $22 mil in SpectraNet, Internet arm of Punj Lloyd
Punj Lloyd
punjlloyd.com
SpectraNet to cast fiber net across India
Circuit EC
New Delhi: CATEGORY A ISP Spectra-Net, the Internet arm of Punj Lloyd, has planned an investment of Rs 2000 crore ($435 mil) over the next three years for laying a broadband optical fiber cable network across the country. For this the company has received investments of Rs 100 crore ($22 mil) from ICICI and Punj Lloyd, its parent company, and is exploring the possibility of attracting venture capital funds or going public to raise the remaining amount.
It has already completed work on the 170 kilometer high-capacity fiber optic cable in Delhi, and similar work is expected to start soon in other areas within six months. It is understood that the company has selected around 40 cities for the same. According to Atul Punj, Chairman of SpectraNet, the services will be launched in a phased manner. "To start with we will launch the fiber optical cable in Delhi for the commercial use by April 2000," he said.
In addition, the company has also chalked out plans to foray into the areas of convergence and Internet access. The initiatives includes starting the Internet-over-cable venture, multimedia services, commercial application services for corporates including Supply Chain Management, Customer Relati-onship Management and Enterprise Resource Planning, apart from developing portal for the media and entertainment sectors. The company also plans to start operations in niche areas like disaster recovery, online training, tele-medical services and tele-education services.
Besides, the company has recently applied to the Department of Telecommunications to set up its own international gateway. It is understood that the company is presently in talks with local cable operators in Delhi for getting ahead with its Internet-over-cable venture.
-ExpressComputers
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