The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has launched an online portal to enable companies participating in government procurement to file complaints for alleged violation of the Public Procurement (Preference to Make in India) Order, 2017. The government issued Public Procurement (Preference to Make in India) Order, 2017 on June 15, 2017, to promote production of goods and services in India and enhance income and employment in the country. The order aimed at incentivising production linked through local content requirements to encourage domestic manufacturers’ participation in public procurement activities over entities merely importing to trade or assemble items.
According to an office memorandum of the DPIIT, stakeholders can lodge grievances for alleged violation of the order and the department can refer those to procuring entities/ministries/departments concerned through the portal on real-time basis for examination, necessary corrective action. “DPIIT has launched an online portal to enable entities like suppliers/bidders participating in government procurement to lodge grievances for alleged violation of the PPP-MII Order, 2017,” it said. It added that companies can register themselves on the portal and generate user ID/password for filing their online grievances.
“It is expected that the portal shall significantly reduce the grievance redressal time. All suppliers/bidders as well as procuring entities/ministries are advised to make efficient and effective use of the portal,” the memorandum said. From July 1, the grievances will mandatorily be required to be lodged through this online portal. Earlier, the department had cancelled government tenders worth thousands of crores because of discriminatory practices being followed. Restrictive and discriminative tender practices prevent participation of domestic companies in government procurement.
