A cost comparison of various commodities on the Government e-Marketplace (GeM) portal with those of popular online platforms such as Amazon, Flipkart showed that GeM prices were 9.5% lower, an analysis in the Economic Survey 2021-22 showed on Monday.
10 out of 22 commodities in the sample were cheaper on the GeM portal as compared to other platforms. For instance, the offer price of a Parker Jotter Standard Ball Pen was Rs 200 on GeM versus Rs 207 on other websites. Similarly, a Milton 1500ml thermos cost Rs 1,101 on GeM as opposed to Rs 1,499 on other platforms. Some of the other products in the analysis included items such as Godrej Interio Elite Mid Back Chair, Bajaj Pulsar 220 F, Godrej Interio Steel Almirah 2400 mm and Samsung Basic Television TV 43 Inch LED Backlit LCD among others.
The Government had set up the dedicated e-market in 2016 for purchase of certain standard day to day use goods. “This is a simple, transparent and completely digital process for procurement. The General Financial Rules 2017 mandates all Ministries and Departments to procure Goods and Services available on GeM from GeM,” the survey noted.
“The use of this e-marketplace has resulted in a substantial reduction in prices in comparison to the rates used earlier, with average prices falling by at least 15-20 per cent, up to 56 per cent,” the survey stated.
The results for the said categories are broadly in line with the assessment of GeM conducted by the World Bank, which found that GeM enabled an average savings of 9.75 per cent on the median price for the period between February 2019 and January 2020, the survey highlighted. The maximum savings in the top five categories ranged from 23.5% to 60.5%. The study attributed this, in large part, to increased participation per bid and better price discovery.
The Government had set up the dedicated e-market in 2016 for purchase of certain standard day to day use goods. “This is a simple, transparent and completely digital process for procurement. The General Financial Rules 2017 mandates all Ministries and Departments to procure Goods and Services available on GeM from GeM,” the survey noted.
Source : Economic Times
