The Hindu                       18.04.2013

Govt. procurement goes online

Move to usher in transparency and accountability.

In a move to enhance transparency and accountability, the territorial administration has launched e-procurement Mission Mode Project (MMP).

This is a web-based system aimed at enhancing transparency, accountability, reliability and responsiveness in all government procurement activities for all kinds of procurement such as goods, services and works. It enables secure online bid submission, online payment of tender fee and earnest money deposit and access to bid opening event from any place on a round-the-clock basis through the internet.

It has made Digital Signature Certificate (DSC) mandatory for e-procurement transactions by both the tender inviting departments and bidders to ensure security of transactions, authentification and digitally sign the tender documents to be published on the e-procurement portal.

As per gazette notification, procurement with an estimated cost of Rs. 10 lakh and above are required to go through the tender process by all government departments through the e-procurement portal,http://pudutenders.gov.in, within the time limit prescribed for each department.

A separate e-procurement cell has also been established in Chief Vigilance Office, Puducherry, to monitor the project in the Union Territory. All individual and companies desirous of participating in tenders through e-procurement should obtain the DSC from accredited certifying authorities such as TCS, Sify, n-Code, etc. They will approach the e-procurement cell through the respective departments for help.

A core committee has also been set up to maximise the use of the portal by all departments. T. Sreekant, Secretary, IT; Pankaj Kumar Jha, Additional Secretary (Administrative Reforms Wing), and S. Rajasekaran, State Informatics Centre, NIC, are the members.

W.V.R. Murthy, Secretary, Finance, said that the Animal Husbandry Department was the first department to award the first contract through the e-procurement portal. It had awarded a contract for Rs. 58 lakh to procure various materials through online tendering process.

The importance of expediting the use of e-procurement system has been communicated to all heads of various departments. It was an easy, transparent and efficient method to award contracts. The heads of departments have been directed to switch over e-procurement method as quickly as possible, he said.