By Procuring goods and services on behalf of government authorities has never been so easy. We must be grateful for the new development in the market, Government E-Marketplace (GeM Portal), for making things easier. Let us know in detail about this online platform.
- What is GeM?
- Objectives of GeM
- Key Features of GeM
- Advantages for Buyer & Seller
- Initiatives by GeM
- Awards by GeM
- FAQs for GeM
What is GeM Portal?
Government E-Marketplace is an online portal where government buyers and sellers can exchange goods and services without the fear of fraud and in a quick manner.
This portal was first launched on 9th August 2016 by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India. Before the launch of GEM, these exchanges took place through the Directorate General of Supplies and Disposals (DGS&D).
DGS&D is a nearly 100 years old platform where goods and services were procured. But, GeM came with better results and more transparency and replaced DGS&D.
Currently, the GeM portal offers more than 7400 products in 150 categories and transport services for hire.
Over Rs140 Crore of transactions has already been processed through GeM. With GeM, one can purchase daily goods and services with minimal human interaction, completely paperless, cashless, and system-driven.
The Ministry of Finance regulates the purchases through GeM by Government users. The exchanges are authorised and obligatory under Rule No. 149 in the General Financial Rules, 2017. GeM is owned by SPV (Special Purpose Vehicle).
It is a cent percent government-owned and non-profit company under the Ministry of Commerce and Industries, Government of India. It has collaborated with various banks and ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) systems of large buyers for payment services.
Objectives of GeM
- Government E-Marketplace aims to increase transparency, efficiency, and speed in procurement.
- Direct purchase, e-bidding, direct reverse auction, and bidding with reverse e-auctions are some modes for procuring goods and services.
- This online platform enables economies of scale, efficient price discovery, and dissemination of best practices.
Key Features of GeM Portal
Let us go through some highlights of GeM –
Transparency
With GeM, human interference has become minimal. One can easily register, place orders and make payments with transparency. Also, it facilitates SMS and email verification, for both buyer and seller, before moving on to the next step.
Public Financial Management Systems (PMFS) and State Bank Multi Option System (SBMOPS) assist in making online and timely payments.
Safe
GeM is a secure platform, and the documents on GeM are digitally signed at various stages by the buyers and sellers. Verification is done through MCA21, Aadhar, and PAN databases. Also, SEBI empanelled credit rating agencies to help conduct a third-party assessment of suppliers. GeM does online verification of all vendors irrespective of the value of procurement.
Savings For The Government
Because GeM is transparent, efficient, and easy to use, prices have been significantly reduced. GeM prices are reduced by at least 15-20% and sometimes by up to 56%.
Demand Aggregation is expected to further drive the prices south, by way of standardization of specifications and economy of scale. Demand aggregation for most of the common use goods and services is estimated to result in annual savings to the tune of Rs 40,000 Crore per annum.
If pursued to its logical conclusion, GeM would eventually emerge as the National Public Procurement Portal, keeping in tune with the Global best practices; most of the OECD countries, like USA, South Korea, UK, Singapore etc, have a single NPPP and as a result annual savings of billions of dollars are made in public procurement, besides giving a fillip to the domestic industry.
Potential to support Make in India
On GeM, the filters for selecting goods which are Preferential Market Access (PMA) compliant and those manufactured by Small Scale Industries(SSI), enables the Government buyers to procure Make in India and SSI goods very easily. Easily accessible MIS also enables the administrators and policymakers to easily and effectively enforce the Government regulations on PMA and SSI sourcing. After the launch of GeM it has been noticed that several leading computer manufacturers have placed PMA compliant products on GeM.
Easy to Use
On GEM, one can set a filter for the goods and services to procure. One can filter goods on Preferential Market Access (PMA) compliant and Small Scale Industries (SSI) basis. This feature enables Government buyers to procure Make in India and SSI goods easily.
So, we have discussed some of the vital aspects of GeM.
Now, let us look at what advantages GeM provides buyers and sellers.
Advantages
Edges For Buyers(GeM Portal)
- It offers an affluent listing of products for individual categories of goods or services.
- It has features like Search, Compare, Select, Filter, and Buy.
- One can buy goods and services online as per the need.
- It enables transparency.
- It is an easy portal to operate.
- It ensures a constant vendor rating system.
- It has an updated user-friendly dashboard for buying and monitoring supplies and payments.
- There’s always an easy return policy.
Edges For Sellers(GeM Portal)
- Sellers have direct entrance to all government departments.
- It is a one-stop solution for marketing with the tiniest efforts.
- It enables bids or a reverse auction on products and services.
- There’s a feature of “New Product Suggestion” for the sellers.
- A seller can change the price based on market conditions.
- The dashboard is apt for selling, monitoring supplies, and making payments.
- It enables consistent purchase procedures.
Nothing is perfect in this world; some flaws are always there in anything you see. GeM is no different.
Challenges of GeM
- Rule #149 is mandatory for all government organisations to exchange goods and services. But, it is difficult for all government organisations to comply with rule #149.
- The Government of India has multiple portals, including the defence procurement portal and the Indian Railways e-Procurement System, which may hamper GeM’s ability to fulfil its mandate as the National Public Procurement Portal and provide the advantage of economies of scale and efficiency.
Initiatives by GeM
Here as some recent initiatives taken by GeM –
- In June 2021, GeM launched a Google Playstore App, “GeM SAHAY” to help the proprietors meet large-scale orders, and inturn help them get loans against their purchase orders.
- GeM has declared a new product category “Green Room Air Conditioners” on its portal as a part of a nationwide sustainability drive. Since June 2021, GEM has on boarded sellers of Green ACs.
- A web page for Bamboo products and quality planting materials on the GeM portal has been created in June 2021. The Union Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Shri Parshottam Rupala, launched the page. It is named “The Green Gold Collection.”
- In June 2021, GeM opened the portal for onboarding specially-abled sellers under its initiative “Divyangjan entrepreneurs”.
Awards Received by GeM
The GeM portal has made the exchange of goods and services very easy. It has received many awards. Some of them are as follows-
- In 2018, it was awarded Digital India Platinum Award for “Exemplary Online Service” by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).
- The portal was nominated for the United Nations ITU WSIS Prize.
- GEM was honoured with the South Asia Procurement Innovation Award by the World Bank in 2016.
- In March 2020, the business won The Hindu Business Line Changemaker Award for Digital Transformation.
FAQs on GeM
- Who can buy/purchase through GeM?
All Central government and State Government Ministries/Departments including its attached/subordinate offices, Central and State autonomous bodies, Central and State Public Sector Units and local bodies etc. are authorized to make procurement through GeM portal. - Who is authorized to register as Primary User on GeM?
Authorized officers of the rank of Deputy Secretary/Equivalent or Head of the Office at Sub Center / Unit / Branch of Government Organisation / PSU / Autonomous Bodies / Local Bodies / Constitution Bodies / Statuary Bodies can register as Primary User on GeM. - What are the Requirements to utilize the GeM portal?
For Using GeM portal first a Primary User needs to register on GeM portal. Requirement of Registration on GeM are as follows:- Aadhaar number of the user
- Mobile number which is linked with Aadhaar
- Email ID ending with gov.in/nic.in/gembuyer.in
- Verifying authority details such as name, mobile number and email ID ending with gov.in/nic.in
- Goods up to what value can be purchased on GeM?
Please refer Rule 149 of GFR 2017. The GeM portal shall be utilized by the Government buyers for direct on-line purchases as under :- Up to Rs.25,000/- through any of the available suppliers on the GeM, meeting the requisite quality, specification and delivery period. The procuring authorities will certify the reasonability of rates.
- Above Rs.25,001/- and up to Rs.5,00,000/- through the GeM Seller having lowest price amongst the available sellers, of at least three different manufacturers, on GeM, meeting the requisite quality, specification and delivery period. The tools for online bidding and online reverse auction available on GeM can be used by the Buyer if decided by the competent authority. The procuring authorities will certify the reasonability of rates.
- Above Rs.5,00,000/- through the supplier having lowest price meeting the requisite quality, specification and delivery period after mandatorily obtaining bids, using online bidding or reverse auction tool provided on GeM. The procuring authorities will certify the reasonability of rates.
- How to make purchase on GeM?
- SignUp using the link https://gem.gov.in/register/buyer/signup. On completion of verification, Login as Primary user/HoD in GeM portal and create secondary users (Buyer/Consignee/PAO/DDO) after clicking on Manage users tab available in Dashboard.
- Buyer to login to GeM portal. Select and cart the product as per the requirement through application of various filters. Buyers should apply filters carefully to define their requirement without adversely affecting competitiveness. Select the proper buying method as per the GFR-149.
- Create demand — Generate Sanction order — Generate contract. Once order is placed, Seller to deliver the Goods/ Services to consignee within stipulated delivery date and generate on-line invoice on GeM portal.
- Consignee to login after receipt of Items. Generation of Provisional receipt Certificate (PRC) within 48 hrs of receipt of stores. Generation of Consignee Receipt and Acceptance Certificate (CRAC) within 10 days of receipt of stores.
- Bill processing by buyer (within 2 days of generation of CRAC by consignee) — Bill to be forwarded to PFMS by DDO within 1 day of on-line receipt of bill from Buyer against e-signed Consignee’s Receipt and Acceptance Certificate (CRAC) (In case of central government organizations paying through PFMS) — Payment to be made by PAO from PFMS within 2 days of receipt of bill from DDO (total time limit for payment is 10 days from date of generation of CRAC). Or Buyer to forward all documents for payment to Paying Authority and Payment to be released by Paying Authority / PAO within 10 days of generation of Consignee’s Receipt (In case of users paying through SBI e-pay or Other mode of Payment.)
To read more FAQs, click here.
- Who can sell on GeM?
The “Seller(s)” on GeM will be the OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) and/or their authorized channel partner(s)/ resellers (having any general authorization / dealership of the OEM to sell their product in open market) and e- Marketplaces. - How do I sell on GeM?
- To sell on GeM, Register yourself on the GeM portal.
- List your products under specific product categories.
- Once an order is received, deliver the product to the Consignee duly entering its details on the portal.
- Once an order is successfully delivered, Consignee shall inspect / test the product for its conformity with contract specifications and issue acceptance / rejection through on-line CRAC.
- After CRAC, buyer will process the bill and forward to paying authority for time bound payments.
To read more FAQs, click here.
Conclusion
So, with this, we would like to end the article here. We hope you got a detailed idea of what Government E-Marketplace is. If you are also a government organisation that wants to procure goods and services, get yourself registered on the GeM portal today and avail its benefits.
References
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