UP to procure blankets from Government e-Marketplace
Lucknow The state government on Monday decided to procure woolen blankets from the Government e-Marketplace (GeM) portal to avoid any controversy and ensure timely supply.
The decision comes in wake of difficulties faced by the state government in supplying sweaters to students of government-run primary schools.
These blankets will be distributed to the poor across the state during winter.
Principal secretary, MSME, Navneet Sehgal, informed that the government has decided to procure the blankets directly from the portal.
Only UP State Handloom, UPICA, UP Khadi and Gram Udyog Board, Gandhi Ashram and UP Handicraft Corporation will be entitled to file tenders for procurement of blankets on behalf of the state government.
“On the request of the revenue department, the government has decided to procure woolen blankets from the GeM portal,” said Sehgal.
Uttar Pradesh tops the country in terms of gross merchandise value (GMV) when it comes to placing orders on the Government e-marketplace (GeM).
The Gross Merchandise Value is the total value of merchandise sold in a specified period.
Launched on August 9, 2016, by the Modi government to make the procurement system by government and public sector bodies transparent, the Yogi government started procurement from the GeM platform after March 2018.
“The Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) of Uttar Pradesh is the highest among all states across the country, when it comes to procuring goods from the GeM platform. But the state trailed top ranking Delhi in terms of number of orders placed,” said Sehgal.
The UP government has issued instructions for procuring products through GeM and pursuing e-tendering only for such goods that are not available on the portal.
BENEFITS OF GeM
*Greater transparency and efficiency
*Checks corruption
*Relieves government agencies of repetitive tendering
*Cuts down administrative and transaction costs
*Minimizes prices
*Effective tool for financial and budget maintenance