Govt orders inquiry into GeM procurement

Patna: The state govt has taken strict action to address alleged irregularities in procurements made through the Govt e-Marketplace (GeM) portal by various urban local bodies. In a departmental review meeting of the urban development and housing department held here on Saturday, deputy CM Vijay Kumar Sinha took serious note of complaints regarding irregularities in the purchase of goods and services by municipal bodies via the GeM portal.

The deputy CM, who also holds the UDHD portfolio, emphasised that the GeM portal, developed by the Govt of India, is intended to make govt procurement processes transparent, competitive and quality-oriented. He issued necessary instructions to ensure transparency and accountability.


The review revealed that in several cases, prescribed procedures were not fully followed. To rectify the situation, he directed the formation of a 4-member high-level committee under the chairmanship of the managing director, Bihar Urban Infrastructure Development Corporation (BUIDCO), Animesh Parashar.

The committee includes additional secretary Vijay Prakash Meena, chief engineer, and chief engineer (as ex-officio secretary) as members. The panel will hear complaints related to the GeM portal, conduct investigations and recommend necessary corrective measures.

In this context, specific instructions were issued to the Khagaria Nagar Parishad to immediately suspend (in written form) all purchase orders for services and materials procured through the GeM portal at rates higher than prevailing market prices. It was further directed that no supplies be accepted against these orders and no payments be made.

Complying with the directive, Khagaria Nagar Parishad promptly suspended procurements made at rates exceeding market prices via the GeM portal with immediate effect. The major companies and entities whose supplies and services were halted include Manya Enterprises, Panther Unit Infrastructure Private Ltd, Green Enviro Equipment Private Ltd and Aman Cleaning Equipment Pvt Ltd.

The deputy CM clearly instructed that purchases of goods and services available on the GeM portal must strictly adhere to prescribed financial rules, prevailing guidelines and quality standards.

Sinha directed municipal administrators to review rates listed on the GeM portal against market prices and permit purchases only after ensuring that procurement rates do not exceed prevailing market rates. It is noteworthy that complaints were received from several municipal bodies alleging that the tender process was manipulated by registering companies in the names of different family members of the same family on the GeM portal.