GeM: Smart Portal to Sell Goods & Service Direct Govt. Officials

 

1. What is GeM (Government e-Market Place)?

The Indian government created GeM (Government e-marketplace) for the purchase of common commodities and services needed by numerous government departments. The fundamental reason for creating this platform was to encourage efficiency and transparency in both the public and governmental sectors.

It is a self-sustaining and user-friendly platform where you may sign up to sell any goods and services and deliver those goods and services straight to the government officials of the country. For the present government transparency is a vital factor and to maintain this they took the bold step to establish this government e-market portal.

Through this portal, the government can purchase any kind of goods or services, and it also aids in the essential reform of the public procurement system. So, the seller can receive the highest possible price for their products and services without any hassle.b

2. How does GeM (Government e-Market Place) Work

The Indian government launched GeM (Government e-Marketplace) in early August 2016 on the advice of two groups of secretaries to the prime minister. The government created a dedicated e-platform to improve the state of DGS&D by purchasing several goods and services directly from the portal for procurement of various state and federal government organisations.

On this site, sellers can sell anything directly to the government. To become a registered vendor on GeM, the procedure is quite straightforward and only requires a few documents. After logging in to GeM (Government e-Marketplace), you can start listing your goods and services there to sell. 

As soon as you register on this platform as a seller, you can submit a bid for the goods or services that the buyers have requested. The business that offers the lowest price wins the bid and provides the goods or services to the specific consumer.

Since this platform is entirely cashless and paperless, it has a limited human interface, which increases its transparency. Many dealers and buyers have already registered on the portal. More than 7400 products in 150 categories of goods and services are currently available on GeM, and this platform has handled more than 140 crores of transactions.

2.2 Features of GeM (Government e-Market Place)

The following are the common features of GeM (Government e-Market Place):

2.2.1 Transparency

The primary goal of this government e-market portal is to increase openness in how the government purchases products and services. Additionally, the fact that there is no intermediary between the buyer and the seller makes the entire process quite clear and smooth. 

Every stage of the transaction is communicated to the buyer, seller, and payment commission by SMS and email notification. Because of its reputation for smooth processes and online time-bound payments, vendors trust the platform to sell the products and services and spend less time and money pursuing government officials for on-time payments.

2.2.2 Efficiency

GeM (Government e-Marketplace) is an online marketplace for the purchase of products and services at an effective price. The entire procedure, from registration to buying and selling goods and services, is quick and easy on this platform. The end-to-end integration of this portal is beneficial for determining fair prices and bidding. 

Once you've signed up on the GeM as a seller, you may quickly and easily put in a bid for any open sale. You will be notified through SMS or email if you win the auction within seven days of placing your bid, on average. After that, you can make the delivery to the customer and receive payment. The entire procedure makes this portal effective, fair, quick, and transparent.

2.2.3 Security

The majority of consumers and sellers are most concerned with security and safety when their payment and personal information are involved on any online site. GeM (Government e-Marketplace) keeps this in mind and offers a safe and secure platform with total privacy for your information and payments. 

The buyers and sellers have electronically signed every document. Credit rating agencies are present in addition to recognised organisations like SEBI to conduct third-party evaluations. GeM verified all the vendors and buyers to offer a high level of security.

2.2.4 Savings

Due to competition, prices for goods and services on the portal are significantly lower than those for tenders, rate contracts, and direct purchases, which helps the government save a lot of money on the acquisition of goods and services from the platform. 

The price discrepancies on the portal might range from 15 to 20%, and in certain situations, they can even reach 56%. In addition, the government is able to save more money because of the increased demand for the goods that are purchased by the various departments of the national and state governments.

2.2.5 Potential

GeM offers a variety of filters that anyone may use to quickly find products that are made in India and buy them to support the government's make in India initiative. In addition to other filters, it is simple to choose products made by small-scale companies, preferential market access compatible goods, etc.

2.3 What is the Importance of GeM (Government e-Market Place)?

GeM is good for many reasons and serves several different purposes. There are many benefits of GeM (Government e-Marketplace) Let's examine the common factors that make the GeM an essential and significant platform.

2.3.1 Promoting Atamnirbhar Bharat – In order to stimulate and increase the sales of small Indian manufacturers, the Indian government created the Atamnirbhar Bharat policy.  GeM is the ideal platform to support this policy since, on it, small-scale vendors can also easily register their items and sell them directly to the government.

2.3.2 Transparent and cost-effective – GeM is a transparent platform where everything is evaluated by trustworthy authorities. The procurement of goods and services is also very cost-effective because there is no intermediary involved and buyers interact directly with the vendor.

2.3.3 Benefits of small and local vendors - Since anybody may register oneself as a seller on the platform if they possess certain documentation, it has become simple for small vendors to sell their goods or services directly to the government and its officials and receive timely payment.

2.3.4 Various entities in one location - The platform's aggregate demand for a variety of goods and services allows for the entry of multiple entities, who can then put in bids to sell their wares.

3. Advantage of GeM (Government e-Market Place) for Buyers

The benefits of GeM (Government e-Marketplace) for buyers are as follows:

• The platform offers a smooth,  interactive, and user-friendly interface.

• There are numerous ways to search, compare and filter products.

• There are numerous product and service categories.

• The platform makes it simple to purchase goods whenever and from wherever.

• Customers can offer their feedback and rate vendors for their goods and services through vendor rating systems.

• In the event that the product doesn't live up to expectations, the platform also offers a refund policy to the customer.

3.2 Advantage of GeM (Government e-Market Place) for Sellers

The benefits of GeM (Government e-Marketplace) for sellers include the following:

• Sellers have the option of selling directly to government representatives.

• Because there are no middlemen involved, the platform is transparent.

• Timely-payment.

• The platform offers vendors dynamic pricing. Depending on the state of the market, they might adjust the price of goods and services.

• Multiple goods and services are up for bid by sellers.

• Simple tracking of payments, purchases, and services is made possible by the platform's user-friendly dashboard.

• The platform only requires a small amount of marketing to sell the product.

3.3 Challenges of GeM (Government e-Market Place)

Even though the government e-marketplace is a very good opportunity for many vendors and the platform provides several benefits as well. We cannot avoid the challenges it is facing to become a more compatible platform. Let’s look at the common challenge faced by GeM:

3.3.1 Numerous Portals

The largest issue GeM is currently facing is multiple portals. This challenge needs to be overcome for this platform to achieve more success. The defence procurement portal and the Indian railway e-procurement portal are two examples of different procurement portals that operate at various levels. 

Due to the existence of competing portals, this platform is unable to fulfil its role as the national site for public procurement and contribute to the development of the national economy. Therefore, the government must address this issue to make GeM a national platform for procurement.

3.3.2 Noncompliance with the Rule

The General Financial Rules (GFR) 2017 have a rule 149 that the government has created for the GeM (Government e-Marketplace) for the procurement of goods and services. According to this regulation, all government employees must use the GeM platform to purchase all readily available common products and services. However, not all officials obey these regulations, and it can be difficult for the government to have everyone follow these rules.

4. The Bottom Line

GeM (Government e-Marketplace) is a bold move by the government to assist local vendors and promote transparency in government officials' procurement of products and services. This platform is accessible to all including small and medium enterprises, which benefits the local and small manufacturing sectors. The website is totally safe and secure. Although there are some obstacles the government must overcome, this platform has a bright future and will soon become the nation's procurement gateway.