GeM or “Government e- Marketplace” is an initiative by the government taken in the lines of e-governance to facilitate the institution or creation of a single unified platform for obtaining “common use goods and services” through a digital or cyber method so as to make the process easier and smoother and increase accessibility to the providers. These “goods and services” are usually demanded by the multiple government bodies, associations and public sector undertakings.
GeM seeks to increase the timeliness, profitability, and openness of government contracts. To help official subscribers get the most for their expenditure, it offers the e-bidding, reversed e-auction, and requirement consolidation technologies. The introduction of the innovative Rule No. 149 to the General Financial Rules of 2017 by the Ministry of Finance authorised and mandated the transactions made by Govt subscribers via GeM.
What’s in a GeM Portal Tender for Sellers?
- It establishes a strong, transparent and accessible connection with all state administrative agencies so as to improve the relation between the sellers and the buyers and consequently make the transaction a smoother process.
- It creates a singular platform for conducting transactions, therefore reducing the hassle of going through multiple sites and resources and finding all the information required at one place only.
- It also creates a singular platform for bids/reverse auctions on certain goods and services which are provided by the seller, hence enhancing their reach and engagement.
- “New Product Recommendation” is also an interesting feature added to aid the sellers to conduct a well-informed transaction.
- Coming to the issue of pricing, it creates a provision of changeable or modifiable price as it will always depend on the market forces and circumstances in which the economy is functioning. In simple words, the demand and supply ratio helps in determining the pricing.
- The user interface has been designed in a way to aid the sellers through dashboards where they can constantly keep a tab of the transaction made, payments reimbursed and other associated aspects.
- The manner or the process of buying has been made to be unchanging and hence a single process applies to all, therefore ensuring an ease of transaction.
How Can a GeM Tender Help Buyers?
- It ensures the availability of a diverse range of products in various sections of goods and services. This ensures a choice-based-approach where the buyer has a freedom to get what he is looking for based on certain requirements,
- The availability of the option to find, make a comparison and then choose and purchase specific goods allows the buyer to make an informed decision, therefore making the process more reliable and requirement oriented.
- The introduction of a government portal has increased transparency and accountability to a very large extent due to which the transactions are much safer and information is readily available.
- It also makes sure to consistently update the ratings of all sellers present on the site so as to allow the buyer to purchase from a highly trusted seller and reduce risks.
- The user interface has been designed in a way to aid the sellers through dashboards where they can constantly keep a tab of the transaction made, payments reimbursed and other associated aspects
- It also makes provisions for “return” of any product within a specified time frame and has in place a detailed policy to make the “Return” process easy for both buyers and sellers.
The advantages are manifold but it may seem tedious or complicated to first time users who are not acquainted with the interface or the process. That’s where BidAssist, a website dedicated to increase literacy of such users planning to avail the services of portals like GeM comes into play. Their consumer friendly approach and dynamic problem solving methods are fruitful for users eyeing for a GeM Portal Tender.
To view a GeM Portal Tender on BidAssist, all you need to do is follow these simple steps:
- Go to the BidAssist web-portal and sign into the website. Find the ‘Sign In’ button on the top-right corner of the homepage and enter your mobile number in the pop-up that will appear. You’ll be sent an OTP for authentication; enter this in the space provided.
- Search for GeM Tender keywords in the search bar. You can choose any of the following keywords: GeM, GeM Portal, GeM Tender, GeM Portal Tender or search GeM in the category filter to view all the available GeM tenders. A list of all the active GeM tenders will appear.
From here, you can pick any tender and get regular updates on the same by simply clicking on the ‘heart’ icon right next to it.
PROCESS OF SELLING YOUR PRODUCT ON GeM TENDER PORTAL:
- To fulfil the requirements, you need to be an “Original Equipment Manufacturer” or OEM or any subsidiaries in the form of “resellers” or “partners” who have acquired prior authorisation from the OEMs to conduct business on their behalf.
- The first step is to go to the GeM tender portal and complete the registration process on the same as a “Seller”.
- Following the registration, the seller must mention all the goods and services offered by them on the said portal under specified classifications.
- If and when a seller receives an order, the seller must make the delivery of the order within the agreed upon time depending on fulfilment of other conditions as well.
- After delivering the consignment, its specifications must be entered into the portal.
- Upon receiving the product, the buyer can conduct an inspection to check whether the quality, standards and specifications match their requirement and then accept or decline through the portal’s “Consignee Receipt and Acceptance Certificate”
- Then the purchaser shall make a bill and send it to the authority in-charge of payment for ensuring that the reimbursement happens on time.
HOW CAN BUYERS ORDER FROM THE GeM PORTAL?
- First and foremost, the user needs to register on the portal by clicking on the following link: https://mkp.gem.gov.in/registration/signup#!/buyer
- As soon as the verification procedure is complete, the user can Log into the “GeM portal”.
- The buyer can go through the product listings, choose and compare and then select the product which meets their requirements and add the same to the cart.
- Filters are available for the buyer to make a search based on their requirements so as to find the appropriate product from numerous listings.
- Next, follow this sequence: Create Demand 🡪 Generate Sanction Order 🡪 Generate Contract
- Post making the order, the seller shall dispatch the same in accordance to the time and date specified.
- Once the buyer receives the product, he shall log into the portal and generate the Provisional Receipt Certificate within 48 hours of receiving the delivery.
- CRAC – Consignee Receipt and Acceptance Certificate is generated within 10 days of delivery of the product.
- Once CRAC is done, the buyer has two days to generate the bill which is forwarded through payment authority to ensure payment
The GeM portal has made the process of transactions between state departments and OEMs a very smooth and easy process. All the buyers and sellers must avail the benefits of the same. For the ease, you may choose to create a profile on BidAssist and avail of the GeM & Bid Advisory to start bidding for GeM portals in no more than 48 hours. Your bid is just a click away!