The Hindu Business Line : Single portal for e-procurement

Single portal e-procurement is a speedy "activator" bringing order to the existing nerve-racking tendering system, enabling malpractices and corruption. The whole process of inviting tenders, processing, opening at a specified time or through tele-conferencing of the applicants and awarding the contracts will be simplified.

Result of tenders can be published in the Web site of a particular office/establishment. Transparency, elimination of delays and saving in manpower are the important advantages.

For materials needed in day-to-day work, the Desk Executive can be empowered. In Government and Public Sector establishments, the Heads of the Departments may be delegated requisite powers and in contracts involving political decision, time frame may be fixed by PMO/Cabinet. For global tenders, power may be vested with the concerned Minister or GOM.

Similar delegations may be drawn up in companies of varied sizes.

Owing to the infusion of transparency in the scheme, time can be saved and delays in the initiation of the projects can be eliminated. Possibly, there will be cut in the proverbial "Red Tape."

T.S. Sundareswaran, New Delhi

With the Government moving faster towards e-governance in all its activities relating to public services such as issue of passports, birth and death certificates, land records, etc, the Centre's latest proposal for e-procurement of materials through a single channel shows its commitment to enlarge the scope of e-governance to more areas.

By introducing the e-procurement mode, the huge volume of paper work starting from getting the list of annual requirements from various departments, consolidating the materials under different heads, approving the indent, preparing tender schedules, publication of tender notices in the dailies, the laborious work in preparation of comparative statements, acceptance and rejection of tenders etc, can all be eliminated.

With the Government switching to e-procurement system, the staff in the DGS&D would not face any retrenchment, the idea is to be welcomed as it will eliminate malpractices and maintain transparency. The Government may consider Coal India's e-procurement method that allows the bidders to view online — without revealing the identity of the bidders — the rates quoted by others and revise their own rates accordingly.

S. Nallasivan, Tirunelveli

e-tender and procurement will certainly help cut down cost as well as lead time in procurement. Further, it will also avoid cartel formation and gang wars.

With more companies joining the fray, the price discovery will also become more efficient and lead to long-term improvement of the Government finances.

Krithivasan Swaminathan, e-mail

Centre must look at e-procurement of materials with the main aim of eliminating `malpractices' and maintaining transparency.

The inconveniences will be known only in due course. They can make e-procurement of materials as a policy and issue guidelines or at least decentralise it department-wise.

A. Jacob Sahayam, Thiruvananthapuram

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