The last date for submitting the technical bid in the tender has been extended to 30 June from 25 June due to a request from some interested companies. Over 80 companies have downloaded the application forms.

According to Roy Mathew, head of business development of IT Mission, around 32 companies are quite serious about the venture. About 18 attended the pre-bid meeting and several visited Malappuram. The government has set 10 July as the deadline for opening the commercial bid.

Mathew says the IT Mission is looking for the past experience of companies, entrepreneurship and other possible revenue strains. "The final bidder will be selected by August because we need connectivity fast."

The Delhi-based Aksh Broadband Ltd, an associated company of Aksh Optifibre Ltd, which claims to be the second-largest optical fibre cable manufacturer, is one of the leading companies that has expressed interest in the Akshaya Project.

Its president Chetan Choudhari is banking on the experience gained from implementing the Gramdoot project in rural Rajasthan. Gramdoot is a Rs 150-crore project providing broadband convergence to rural India delivering voice, video and data on optical fibre.

If it gets to providing connectivity under the Akshaya Project, Aksh is hoping to rope in a local partner, invest about Rs 20 crore in the state and to complete the programme in six months. Choudhari feels it is possible to incorporate e-governance in the same infrastructure at a later stage.

Akshaya, aiming to bridge the digital divide, will provide computer training to at least one person from about 64 lakh families. It plans to set up hundreds of multipurpose community training centres, which will have Internet access, web camera and printer. The entire programme module is designed in Malayalam to facilitate easier learning by the local people.

The programme, launched by Indian President A P J Abdul Kalam in November 2002, will be spread to other districts as well.