BENGALURU: The Government e-Marketplace (GeM), in association with Laghu Udyog Bharati-Karnataka (LUB-K), organised an MSME sellers’ meet intending to bring together Central and State PSU buyers and Karnataka-based MSME sellers under the same roof.
A focused registration drive was conducted at a private hotel on February 23, to provide unlimited market opportunities offered by GeM, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said in a press release. The organisations collaborated to create awareness about GeM and drive its adoption among Karnataka-based MSMEs.
The GeM is a digital public procurement portal that facilitates procurement of goods and services by all central and state government ministries, public sector units (PSUs), panchayats, cooperatives, etc. By providing its stakeholders with a unified digital infrastructure, GeM endeavours to make the public procurement process transparent, efficient, and inclusive.
Laghu Udyog Bharati, is a not-for-profit pan-India organisation established in 1994 to empower micro and small enterprises in the country.
Ajit B Chavan, Additional CEO, GeM, presided over the function and Shrinivasa, Additional Director, DIC, Government of Karnataka, attended the event as the guest of honour. Representatives from MSEs from all over Karnataka and officials from Central and State PSUs also participated in the meeting.
Addressing the gathering, Ajit B Chavan, Additional CEO and Chief Seller Officer, GeM, underscored the important role played by MSEs in fulfilling purchase orders through GeM. Nearly 50 per cent of the total order value of Rs 3.47 lakh crore transacted on GeM has been awarded to MSEs, he said.
He highlighted the huge business opportunities GeM offers to the MSEs of Karnataka thereby boosting their participation in public procurement. He further announced GeM’s plan to launch GeM Sahay 2.0 which would provide collateral-free loans up to Rs 10 lakh within 10 minutes at sub 10 per cent interest rates to address the challenge of limited access to finance among marginalised sellers.
Speaking on the occasion, Shrinivasa said, “GeM is unlocking new business opportunities for Karnataka’s MSEs by providing them access to conducting business in the national public procurement market from anywhere at any time.
A panel discussion was also held during the event where representatives from the Central and State PSUs interacted with the MSE Sellers and further informed them about their public procurement needs, requirements and opportunities.
“Since inception, sellers from Karnataka have fulfilled orders worth Rs 32,937 crore through GeM. Of this, orders worth Rs 12,570 crores have been fulfilled by MSE units registered in the state (till January 31, 2024). With access to the national public procurement market at their fingertips, state MSEs have received a large share of orders from CPSEs across India as well as other state government departments,” highlighted Chavan.
Interestingly, orders worth nearly Rs 11,529 crore have been received by these MSEs from central government buyers and other state buyers (till January 31, 2023).
GeM is committed to fostering inclusivity and increasing access to the market among marginalised seller groups like artisans and weavers, craftsmen, tribal entrepreneurs, MSEs, especially women-led and SC/ST MSEs, Divyangans, SHGs, FPOs and startups. The portal integrates seamlessly with the Udyam portal to facilitate ease in the registration and onboarding of MSMEs.
During the event, the state chapter of Laghu Udyog Bharti, represented by K Narayana Prasanna, General Secretary, LUB-K and Dr Sachin B Sabnis, President, LUB-K mobilised their MSE members from across Karnataka to facilitate their live onboarding on GeM portal and also allowed them to seek on-the-spot redressal of their issues by GeM representatives. Earlier this month, GeM broke all records by surpassing Rs 3 lakh crore in Gross Merchandise Value in the current financial year.
With high-value orders in the pipeline, the portal is on track to hit the Rs 4 lakh crore mark in GMV by the end of this fiscal year. (ANI)