The government portal GeM has crossed ₹2 lakh crore this fiscal year

The procurement of goods and services from the government portal GeM has crossed ₹2 lakh crore this fiscal year due to higher buying activities by different ministries and departments.

The government e-Market (GeM) portal was launched on August 9, 2016, for online purchases of goods and services by all the central government ministries and departments.

In 2021-22, the procurement value stood at ₹1.06 million crore. It crossed ₹2 million crores last year, and going by the trend this year, it may cross ₹3 million crores.

"Gem of a landmark! Government e-Marketplace achieves an impressive ₹2 lakh crore gross merchandise value in just eight months of 2023-24," Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on social media platform X.

GeM is a bet to institutionalized e-commerce

GeM has over 63,000 government-authorized buyer organizations and over 6.2 million sellers and service providers, offering a wide range of products and services.

Government departments, ministries, public sector units, state governments, and central armed police forces are allowed to carry out transactions through this portal. The portal provides various products, from office stationery to vehicles.

Automobiles, computers, and office furniture are major product categories. Services, including transportation, logistics, waste management, webcasting, and analytical, are listed on the portal.

South Korea's KONEPS is the largest such platform in the world. Currently, GeM stands at third position after Singapore's GeBIZ. In a statement, the commerce ministry said that central public sector enterprises (CPSEs) account for 83% of the total buying.

States/UTs like Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Odisha, Bihar, Assam, and Uttarakhand have placed significant amounts of procurement orders in the current financial year.

"GeM's expansion into the services sector has played a pivotal role in driving its accelerated adoption," it said, adding services sector contribution in the total procurement has increased from 23% in 2021-22 to about 46% in the current fiscal.