World Bank gives much of Satyam projects to TCS

The World Bank has hired another Indian IT major Tata Consultancy Services to do much of the work previously being done by Satyam, which has now been debarred by the bank from doing business with it.

"We have hired Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) to do much of the IT work that Satyam used to do," a World Bank spokesperson told PTI.

The IT major had bagged much of the Satyam's project through competitive bidding early last year, thus indicating that the World Bank is not specifically targeting Indian IT companies, as being alleged in certain quarters.

In a statement issued on Monday the World Bank had revealed three Indian IT companies that have been debarred from doing business with it. Besides Satyam, which has been debarred for eight years beginning September 2008, Wipro (beginning June 2007) and Megasoft Technologies (beginning (December 2007) have also been banned for four years each.

Two other Indian companies, Nestor Pharmaceuticals and Gap International (both non-IT entities) and one individual Surendra Singh, too, have been debarred by the global apex monetary institution.

The action was initiated against these entities and an individual as they were found to have "violated the fraud and corruption provisions of the Procurement Guidelines or the Consultant Guidelines," besides offering improper benefits to the Bank staff.

In all, the World Bank has debarred as many as 111 companies and individuals from across the world from doing or bidding for its projects.

The list of 111 entities and individuals debarred by the World Bank from doing business reveal that at least four US companies and five American nationals have been blacklisted.

Of these all except one have been permanently debarred, as against the fixed term for most of the other companies. Companies and individuals from Britain seems to be topping this list with nearly three dozen of them being debarred by the bank.