GeM Portal's Public Procurement Hits Nearly Rs 10 Lakh Cr in 8 Years

The Government e-Marketplace (GeM) portal has achieved nearly Rs 10 lakh crore in public procurement over the past eight years. Launched on August 9, 2016, GeM facilitates online purchases of goods and services for all central government ministries and departments.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted the portal's role in providing opportunities to entrepreneurs, especially those from MSMEs, startups, and SC, ST, and OBC communities. He also noted its contribution to women's empowerment. "This platform has achieved an impressive cumulative sale of nearly Rs 10 lakh crore," Modi stated on social media platform X.

GeM's Expanding Reach and Impact

Since its inception, GeM has enabled the procurement of common-use goods and services by various central and state ministries, departments, Public Sector Enterprises (PSUs), Autonomous Bodies, Panchayats, and Cooperative Societies. The portal began with a procurement value of Rs 422 crore in 2016-17 and surpassed Rs 4 lakh crore in the last fiscal year.

Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Jitin Prasada informed the Rajya Sabha that over 1.63 lakh women-led micro and small enterprises (MSEs) and 25,000 startups have registered on GeM since its launch. This highlights the platform's role in fostering entrepreneurship among diverse groups.

Technological Advancements Enhancing User Experience

GeM CEO P K Singh mentioned that more than 1.5 lakh government buyers are procuring goods and services from about 23 lakh sellers across India. These transactions span 11,523 product categories and 327 service categories without intermediaries. As of August 8, procurement reached Rs 1,92,433 crore, marking a 136% growth over the same period last year.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is playing a crucial role in improving product comparison and price discovery for government buyers. Buyers can scan QR codes on the GeM website to view 3D models of over 300 products through their mobile devices. AI also aids in market intelligence, product similarity analysis, price gap analysis, anomaly detection, and identifying potential collusion among buyers and sellers.

Social Inclusion Through GeM

The portal has significantly promoted social inclusion by supporting women, tribal communities, SC/ST MSMEs, startups, artisans, weavers, craftsmen, self-help groups, farmer producer organizations (FPOs), and Cooperative Societies. This is achieved through its "vocal for local" GeM outlet stores and market interventions.

Service procurement on GeM has accelerated with Rs 3.91 lakh crore worth of services bought since its inception. In the current fiscal year alone, service procurement has reached Rs 80,493 crore. The platform lists a wide range of services including transportation, logistics, waste management, webcasting, and analytical services.

Integration with eGram Swaraj Portal

GeM has taken a significant step towards empowering rural India by fully integrating with the eGram Swaraj portal. This integration streamlines the procurement process for Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) as buyers on GeM.

The portal now offers an interactive multi-lingual eLearning Management System (LMS) in 12 regional languages including English and Hindi. This system helps government buyers, sellers, and service providers train and gain proficiency in navigating the portal on various topics.

Currently, government departments, ministries, public sector units (PSUs), state governments, and central armed police forces are authorised to carry out transactions through this portal. The range of products available includes office stationery to vehicles. Major product categories include automobiles, computers, and office furniture.

KONEPS from South Korea is currently the largest such platform globally. GeM stands at the second position worldwide.

The Government e-Marketplace continues to set new records in public procurement while promoting inclusivity and leveraging technology for enhanced user experience.