It’s not an unknown fact that India is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world and has made strides in digitalizing its functionalities. There has been a significant shift toward e-governance in the past decade. The websites have provided transparency, efficiency and accessibility to the general public. The procurement and the tendering sector have also gained the benefit of this revolution and many websites as well as portals have come into significance for online bidding and tendering. These new platforms and portals have opened new horizons to the tendering and bidding industry in India. It has provided the much filled the gap of information and provided the much-needed awareness in the procurement industry for fair and effect practices. In this article we will examine the government websites for tendering in India, their USPs and notable features.
GOVERNMENT E-MARKETPLACE (GeM)
It is the most significant development in India’s e-procurement industry in recent years. It was 2016, 16, GeM serves as a one-stop portal for online procurement of tenders, they can be of any type ranging from goods and services, public sector undertakings (PSUs), central and state government tenders, all the notices are listed and published on the websites for the bidder to apply and submit their documents and application, quotes before deadlines without running here and there in government offices and wasting their time.
THE USPs OF GeM
- GeM offers a comprehensive platform for a wide range of products and services, from vehicles to construction to office supplies
- It has a direct purchase option from which the buyers can directly purchase low-value items (up to 25000 rupees) without any bidding process, speeding up the procurement of the routine items.
- GeM ensures transparency in pricing by displaying the price, allowing the buyers to make more informed decisions.
- It incorporates the feature of a rating system based on factors like price, quality, and delivery time helping buyers to get reliable suppliers.
- It is integrated with payment systems like PFMS (Public Financial Management System) for a smooth and interruption-free experience.
- GeM has special provisions to promote Micro and Small enterprises (MSEs).
- It has enabled end-to-end digital procurement reducing the paperwork and physical contact.
CENTRAL PUBLIC PROCUREMENT PORTAL (CPPP)
It is a very crucial platform in India’s e-procurement ecosystem system. It was launched by the National Informatics Centre (NIC) and serves as one-point access to all the information related to procurement by various central government organizations and departments.
THE USPs OF CPPP
- It helps in the centralization of information. All the information related to the government departments is consolidated in one place, making it easier for vendors to access the information more easily and smoothly.
- It allows e-publishing of tender enquiries, corrigenda and the details regarding the award of the contract, thereby enhancing transparency.
- It supports end-to-end e-procurement, including online bid opening and closing and their submission.
- CPPP provides a comprehensive management of tenders, streamlining the entire tendering process.
- CPPP generates the MIS (Management Information System) reports to help with decision-making and policy formation.
- The portal is available in both the languages Hindi and English for better understanding and catering to a wider audience.
- CPPP is also available as a mobile app and the tender information can be accessed easily on the go from anywhere, anytime.
INDIAN RAILWAY E-PROCUREMENT SYSTEM (IREPS)
It is a dedicated e-tendering website just for the Indian Railways. The scale and complexity of the world’s largest railway networks are very intricate, so this dedicated portal plays a crucial role in managing the procurement needs of the railways.
THE USPs OF IREPS
- IREPS is specially tailored to meet the unique procurement needs of the Indian Railway Department. It caters for everything from tracks to the components of rolling stock.
- This portal provides reverse auctions, enabling the Railways to secure the best prices for high value purchases.
- The interface of the IREPS is very user-friendly and helps the user to register, view tender,s and submit bids very easily and free of any hassle.
- It provides the feature of real-time tracking, enabling the vendors to check the status of their bids. Reducing doubts and uncertainty and enhancing transparency.
- It has the feature of automated alerts to the venders for new tender opportunities that match the profile of the vendor, making sure that they don’t miss any relevant information.
- To ensure seamless financial transactions the IREPS portal is integrated with the payment system.
THE DEFENCE E-PROCUREMENT PORTAL
It is a specialized portal for defence, this platform fulfils the procurement needs of India’s defence sector. The strategic importance and the unique requirements of the defence industry are catered for by this portal, ensuring the efficient and secure tendering process.
THE USPs OF DEFENCE PORTAL
- It can advance security features that protect sensitive information related to procurement of defence goods and services.
- It is customized according to the defence needs and has specialized compliance rules and regulations, to maintain the website sensitivity.
- It includes vendor development for building the robust domestic defence industry.
- It does maintain the confidentiality of the industry and projects but still provides a degree of transparency to defence procurement, that was traditionally a guarded process.
- Defence e- procurement portal uses a multi-level authentication process to ensure only the authorized entities can access the sensitive information.
- One of the unique features of this portal is to manage the offset obligations, an important aspect of large defence projects.
- It aligns with the government’s make in India policy and promotes the manufacturing of defence good in the country only.
THE STATE GOVERNMENT E-PROCUREMENT PORTALS
Just like the central government, many state governments also have developed their own e-procurement portals. All these portals differ in features and function, but they all cater to one objective of enhancing the transparency and efficiency in the state-level procurement.
Some of the most notable procurement portals include:
- Tender Management System of Government Of Tamil Nadu.
- E-procurement system of Government of Karnataka
- The E-procurement system of the Government of Maharashtra
THE USPs OF STATE GOVERNMENT PORTALS
- The interfaces provide local language support, making the information more accessible to the regional vendors. It helps with better understanding and less confusion.
- These portals are aligned and integrated with the state related policies and developmental goals.
- State portals feature to promote the local, micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
- These websites have state-customized categories to reflect the specific procurement needs.
- These websites are integrated with the state level financial management for better experience and vendor ease.
- These portals promote the local industries that are the key to the state’s economy.
MSTC E- COMMERCE
It was formerly named Metal Scrape Trade Corporation Limited. It is a significant player in the e-auction and e-procurement services. This platform is not exclusive to the government but is widely used by various government departments and PSUs for forward and backward processes as well.
THE USPs OF MSTC
- This platform supports many auctions, including both forward and backward auctions, assets sales and reverse auctions for procurements.
- This portal caters to a wide range of sectors from agriculture products to minerals and coal to scrap materials.
- MSTCs mechanism offers fair price discovery, beneficial for selling government assets.
- This portal can be customized according to the specialized needs of different sectors and government PSUs.
- This platform has brought transparency to the natural resource industry like coal blocks and allocation of tenders to be fair and the reduction of malpractices.
- This platform promotes local manufacturing and aligns with the Make in India initiative of the government, facilitating the sales of domestic products.
The development of e-tendering and bidding platforms by the government has resulted in efficient steps towards the country’s e-governance journey. These platforms have brought a dramatic shift in public procurement, enhancing transparency, accessibility and efficiency. While there are certain challenges, digital inclusion and cybersecurity, benefits are clear and far-reaching.
For business, especially for MSMEs, these platforms have proved to be of enormous value. They offer unprecedented access to government contracts. They work as an efficient tool for the government and lead data- driven procurement. For the public, they offer better value for money and a reduced scope of corruption.
These platforms continue to evolve, incorporating new technologies and have facilitated its users, with the times it seems like these platforms will continue to enhance and provide service to India’s e- procurement industry. By incorporating the new tools and technologies India is ready for addressing the increased demands and needs of a developed nation.
