Bharat Dynamics Ltd has issued a single tender to Aindri Defence Advisory Private Limited for the supply of 300 optical sights used in anti-tank guided missile systems, marking a departure from the defence public sector undertaking’s procurement pattern in the previous two years.
The Hyderabad-based PSU cited urgency while adopting the non-competitive procurement route. Aindri Defence Advisory, a company set up in May 2024 by former BDL Chairman and Managing Director Siddharth Mishra and his wife Shambhavi Mishra, has cleared the technical evaluation stage and quoted ₹56.8 crore for the tender. Its financial bid is currently under evaluation.
The procurement has raised questions over conflict of interest and propriety because of the company’s links with BDL’s former chief and the shift from competitive public-sector tenders in 2024 and 2025 to a single tender involving a private company in 2026.
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₹56.8 Crore Bid for 300 Optical Sights
BDL issued the single tender to Aindri Defence Advisory in May 2026 for the supply of 300 optical sights within seven months following completion of acceptance and validation tests of five sample units supplied by the company.
The five sample units are to be supplied within a month of BDL placing a purchase order.
Optical sights form part of the aiming and target-acquisition systems of anti-tank guided missiles. They are used by operators to locate and track targets and align missiles with them. The tender also requires the supplier to provide technical support for at least 15 years for maintenance, repair and overhaul of the sights.
A single tender is a non-competitive procurement process in which only one vendor is invited to submit a bid. Such a route can be used when only one supplier can meet a requirement or when a procurement is considered urgent.
The tender states that the competent authority certified the demand as urgent and found that any additional expenditure arising from not using an advertised tender was justified. It also states that the nature of the urgency and the reasons the procurement could not have been anticipated had been placed on record. Those reasons were not set out publicly in the material provided.
Company Was Set Up by Former BDL Chief and His Wife
Aindri Defence Advisory was incorporated in May 2024 by Siddharth Mishra and Shambhavi Mishra, with each initially holding a 50% stake.
Siddharth Mishra retired as BDL’s Chairman and Managing Director in March 2023 after serving in the position from 2019. Before joining BDL, he had served in the Indian Navy for more than three decades until 2016 and later worked for three years as a General Manager at Electronics Corporation of India Ltd.
Mishra remained a director and shareholder of Aindri Defence Advisory until January 2025, when he left the company after being appointed Member (Technical) at the National Company Law Tribunal in Kolkata.
Shambhavi Mishra now holds 95% of the company, while director Kaushiki Nandan Vatsyayana owns the remaining 5%.
Siddharth Mishra and Shambhavi Mishra did not respond to calls or messages seeking comment. The company did not respond to questions sent to the email address listed in its filings. Vatsyayana said he could not share information about the BDL tender. BDL also did not respond to queries.
2026 Tender Marks Shift From Competitive Procurement
BDL procured the same type of optical sights through competitive tenders in 2024 and 2025.
The 2024 tender was restricted to Central Public Sector Enterprises, while the 2025 procurement was open to Central Public Sector Enterprises and defence PSUs. India Optel Limited, a Mini Ratna PSU under the Ministry of Defence, won both tenders.
The 2026 procurement differs on two counts. It is a single tender with no competition, and it is addressed only to Aindri Defence Advisory, making it the first time in the three-year period that BDL has invited a private company to supply the optical sights.
The treatment of Micro and Small Enterprises has also changed. The 2024 and 2025 tenders were exempted from the MSE purchase preference through approvals from the competent authority, while the 2026 tender applies the preference.
Under the provision, eligible MSEs and original equipment manufacturers quoting within 15% of the lowest price can be offered an opportunity to match the lowest bid and may receive up to 25% of the order quantity.
Aindri Defence Advisory has cleared the technical evaluation and remains the only bidder in the single-tender process. Its ₹56.8 crore financial bid is still under evaluation, and no final award has been reported in the material provided.
About the author — Suvedita Nath is a science student with a growing interest in cybercrime and digital safety. She writes on online activity, cyber threats, and technology-driven risks. Her work focuses on clarity, accuracy, and public awareness.
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