The beleagured telecom equipment manufacturer, which started making profits since 1997-98, is talking to several multinational companies to jointly produce GSM (global standard for mobile communication) system in India."We are holding dialogues with various companies to produce GSM equipment in the country," ITI chairman and managing director SS motial told PTI but declined to identify the prospective partners.

The public sector unit, which is on the path to recovery with profits of Rs 15.26 crore in 1997-98 and Rs 27.10 crore in 1998-99, plans to produce switches, base terminals and system controllers for GSM, he said.

ITI's plan to enter the GSM market assumes significance as India has made GSM technology mandatory for cellular networks and the government's decision to allow a third operatorbesides a state-owned company as the fourth operator in every circle.

Currently, most cellular operators in India are dependent on costly imported GSM equipment which gives ITI a vast opportunity to operate in this sunrise sector through local manufacturing, he added.

Motial said ITI had recently entered into a tie-up with Nortel of Canada to produce CDMA (code division multiple access) for wireless in local loop (WiLL) after Ericsson took over Qualcomm.