West Bengal Text Book Corporation Invites Bids for Procurement of 35,000 MT Surface Sized Maplitho Paper

West Bengal Text Book Corporation Invites Bids for Procurement of 35,000 MT Surface Sized Maplitho Paper

The Pulp and Paper Times

Kolkata: The West Bengal Text Book Corporation Limited (WBTBCL) has invited bids from eligible and qualified Indian paper mills for the procurement of approximately 35,000 MT of Surface Sized Maplitho paper in reels for printing school textbooks and khata.

The procurement will cover 70 GSM and 58 GSM Surface Sized Maplitho paper, with the 35,000 MT quantity described as the initial requirement, which may change depending on the actual requirement of WBTBCL.

The tender has been issued through an e-tendering process comprising a Technical Bid and a Financial Bid. While the Technical Bid is to be submitted through the e-tendering portal, the Financial Bid is to be submitted in the prescribed Bill of Quantities (BoQ) format. Depending on their production capacity and capability, bidders may quote for any or all of the specified paper grades.

Only Indian Paper Mills Eligible

WBTBCL has specified that participation is restricted to Indian paper mills that manufacture Surface Sized Maplitho paper and possess the required production capacity and capability. Agents and dealers are not eligible to participate in the tender.

The eligibility criteria require bidders to meet specified financial and technical parameters. A bidder must have a minimum average annual turnover of Rs. 375 crore and a positive net worth of Rs. 100 crore for FY 2023-24 and FY 2024-25.

On the technical side, the participating paper mill must have been in production for at least the last three financial years—2023-24, 2024-25 and 2025-26. The average actual recorded production in the Writing & Printing Paper category (HSN 4802) during these three years must be at least 60,000 MT.

In addition, bidders must demonstrate that during any one of the three financial years they supplied at least 6,000 MT of paper to a government organisation, Text Book Corporation, or printers assigned by a government organisation or Text Book Corporation for printing textbooks. A valid BIS licence is also mandatory.

WBTBCL stated that eligibility will be determined on the basis of digitally signed documents submitted in support of the prescribed criteria. Any document found to be manufactured, false or untrue in any material respect can result in outright rejection of the bid, without prejudice to WBTBCL's rights, including forfeiture of the EMD/Bid Security.

L1-Based Allocation
Following the opening of the Financial Bids, the lowest bidder (L1) will be determined based on the quoted rate per MT.

The Purchase Committee will have the discretion to award up to 30% of the total quantity or more to the L1 bidder, subject to factors including the bidder's offered quantity, production capacity, printability of paper, delivery schedule and consistency of quality.

In case two or more bidders quote the same L1 rate, the Purchase Committee may award up to 30% or more of the total quantity to each L1 bidder, or distribute the quantity equally among the L1 bidders where there are more than three L1 bidders, subject to the specified conditions.

Any remaining quantity may be distributed among eligible bidders at the L1 rate, with the tender providing for allocations of up to 25% to L2, 20% to L3, 15% to L4, and 5% each to L5 and L6, or more at the discretion of the Purchase Committee. Such allocation will be subject to the respective bidders agreeing to supply at the L1 rate and meeting requirements relating to offered quantity, production capacity, printability, delivery schedule and quality consistency.

The Purchase Committee will also have the discretion to reallocate unfulfilled quantities in the event of default, failure or delay by any qualified bidder, with the objective of ensuring uninterrupted and timely completion of the procurement.

Key Tender Schedule

According to the tender schedule, the e-NIT/bidding documents were published on 18 August 2026, followed by the pre-bid meeting on 21 August 2026 at 14:00 hrs.

Bidding commenced on 31 August 2026 at 10:00 hrs, with the last date and time for uploading bids set for 8 September 2026 up to 14:00 hrs. The deadline for submission of paper samples at the WBTBCL office at 11, B.T. Road, Kolkata – 700056 is 8 September 2026 up to 16:00 hrs.

The Technical Bids are scheduled to be opened online on 9 September 2026 up to 12:00 hrs.
 

Published at : Sep 07, 2026 11:33 AM (IST)

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