Bid documents for public procurement need to be short, easy to understand: Expenditure Secretary

New Delhi, Feb 4 (PTI) Expenditure Secretary V Vualnam on Wednesday said the bid documents for public procurement of goods and services through the GeM portal should be short so that vendors can easily understand the requirement.

He also said that contract management is another area which needs refinement to ensure that both the vendor and the government fulfil their commitment once the work contract is awarded.

Speaking at the Global Procurement Summit 2026, Vualnam said the tender documents on the GeM portal are usually very lengthy, and such voluminous document becomes confusing for implementing agencies.

Underlining the need for a "short and easy to understand" bid document, the Secretary said "adding more and more paragraphs should not necessarily be seen as something very good... Excessive documentation can be counterproductive".

The Government e-Market (GeM) portal was launched on August 9, 2016, for online purchases of goods and services by all central government ministries and departments. GeM has over 1.5 lakh government buyers and over 62 lakh sellers and service providers offering a wide range of products and services.

Currently, 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 a wide range of products from office stationery to vehicles. Automobiles, computers and office furniture are some of the major product categories.

Services, including transportation, hiring of helicopter services, logistics, waste management, webcasting and analytical, are listed on the portal. PTI JD DRR