“My volume of business has increased ever since I registered on GeM (Government e-Marketplace) in 2017. Earlier, I could supply items only in the vicinity of my shop in Fort area and only within Mumbai. Now, I ship my products all over the country! I have tied up with India Post and three private courier service providers who pick up items from my shop and deliver in due time,” says Hitesh Patel, proprietor of Milan Stationers and Printers, a firm registered with GeM.

Umesh Nai, manager of Joseph Leslie Dynamics Manufacturing Pvt. Ltd – a fire safety equipment provider, says they got a total of 30 crore orders through GeM so far. “GeM has drastically reduced cost of doing business, especially in reducing need for travel in meeting prospective buyers. We are an MSME company and hence we get benefits for MSME vendors as provided by the portal. GeM is a very good platform, highly beneficial for a small company like ours.”

Ketan Choudhary, who represents MSME firm Omkar Enterprise, says that GeM has helped their business to grow. They registered with GeM in 2020 and started selling printers and toners. Now, they are selling computers and laptops tooo. “GeM helps small businesses like ours to grow,” he comments.

A number of GeM vendors shared their experiences in GeM Seller Samvad held in Mumbai on Monday. This gave them an opportunity to learn about the new GeM features and functionalities that further makes it conducive for them to operate on the portal. GeM’s Business Facilitator for Maharashtra and Daman and Diu, Nikhil Patil, informed them that the GeM portal is not only limited to central government offices. It provides a one-stop online procurement portal for all government buyers including central/state ministries, departments, bodies and PSUs. All states (except Sikkim) have entered into an MoU with GeM, thereby facilitating businesses from all around the country to do business with Government departments located all over India, even in remote corners. Maharashtra entered into an agreement with GeM in March 2018, said Patil.  

In his presentation, Patil highlighted the advantages for SMEs for doing business through the GeM portal. MSEs, especially sole proprietors, on GeM can now get a loan at the point of acceptance of an order on the GeM platform. Approximately 2,000 minor and 460+ major functionalities have been introduced on GeM, in the last 24 months for increasing ease of doing business.

The Seller Samvad was also attended by Nishant Deengawal, director, States and Union Territories (GeM) and Nodal Officer of GeM in Maharashtra.

About Government e Marketplace (GeM):

Government e-Marketplace (GeM), the national public procurement portal, is an end-to-end online marketplace for the procurement of goods and services. It was launched on August 9, 2016 as part of the vision of prime minister Narendra Modi for redefining public procurement. GeM has been able to bring about radical changes in the way procurement was done by Government buyers and public sector undertakings. GeM is contactless, paperless, and cashless and stands on three pillars: efficiency, transparency, and inclusivity.

It is noteworthy that GeM has surpassed the milestone of Rs 1 lakh crore of procurement value, in a single fiscal year, in FY 2021-22. Since its inception, GeM has facilitated over 1 crore transactions valued at over Rs 3.02 lakh crore. This has only been possible with the support of all stakeholders including buyers and sellers across the country.

The buyer base of GeM comprises all central and state government departments, cooperative societies and public sector undertakings. The heterogeneous nature of GeM’s seller base clearly reflects on the founding pillar of ‘inclusivity’. Starting from the big companies and conglomerates, the seller base includes women entrepreneurs, self-help groups and MSME sellers from all over the country. Moreover, special provisions have also been created on the GeM portal to ensure a seamless on-boarding experience for MSMEs and SHGs. It is worth mentioning that 62,000 registered government buyers and 50.90 lakh sellers and service providers speak for the size and scale of GeM operations.

Since its inception, GeM has been steadily growing with new product and service categories being added constantly. Currently, there are about 300 service categories and over 10,000+ product categories available on GeM. These categories feature around 44 lakh catalogues of product and service offerings. Further, GeM is an evolving platform and relentlessly works towards adding new features and functionalities to the portal.