BLS International Debarred From New MEA Contracts For Two Years; Existing Business Unaffected
The order was passed on account of allegations that include court cases and complaints received from applicants against the company
BLS International has been debarred by the Ministry of External Affairs or MEA, from participating in all future tenders and contracts for India Mission abroad for a period of two years, according to an exchange filing on Saturday.
The MEA issued the debarment order on Oct. 9, citing various reasons for the action. The company’s regulatory filing explicitly stated that the order was passed on account of allegations that include court cases and complaints received from applicants against the company.
This two-year suspension prevents BLS International from bidding on any new MEA-related work, both domestically and for Indian Missions globally.
The company further clarified that the debarment shall not affect its existing contracts, which will continue to operate under their current terms and conditions.
The company stated that this restriction on future business is not anticipated to affect the financial performance or existing operations of the listed entity. The two-year debarment poses a significant hurdle to BLS International's future growth pipeline with the Ministry of External Affairs.
The visa consulting services provider is otherwise poised to achieve the growth target due to outsourcing by governments, rising fees and the improved industry environment, according to Joint Managing Director Shikhar Aggarwal.
"I think there's a big scope for growth in terms of market share. Even the market, as I said, is growing by more than 14% every year," he said in an earlier interview with NDTV Profit.
"On top of that, governments are outsourcing newer things. Our prices are increasing. So, definitely we feel with the increased base also, that we can deliver at least 20–25% growth over the next five years," Aggarwal said.
Aggarwal outlined that the company already renewed 90% of its contracts. It is optimistic about a clear revenue-growth roadmap due to these contract renewals, some of which even expand up to 10 years.
The scrip had closed 0.04% lower at Rs 337.15 apiece on the NSE. This decline compared to 0.41% gains in the Nifty 50 at close on Friday.
