Delhi Government Receives Special Recognition for Growing Use of GeM and Sustained Participation in Services Procurement
Government Procurement Boosts Opportunities for Women, SC/ST Entrepreneurs and Startups
MSMEs Are Not Just Businesses, But the Strong Foundation of Jobs, Innovation and the Local Economy
Delhi Government Is Providing a Strong Platform for Every MSME, Entrepreneur and Business to Grow: CM Rekha Gupta
New Delhi, August 2026 : Government procurement in Delhi was once a complex and time-consuming process for small businesses and entrepreneurs. Finding information about tenders and procurement procedures, and completing the various formalities, was often challenging for smaller businesses. With the effective use of the Government e-Marketplace (GeM), the procurement process has now become digital, simpler and more transparent. This is giving small businesses and entrepreneurs access to a common and wider digital marketplace for government procurement.
Under the leadership of Delhi Chief Minister Smt. Rekha Gupta, the Delhi government has been consistently working to empower micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), expand their access to new markets and government procurement opportunities, and make the procurement process more transparent, simple and based on a level playing field. By promoting the effective use of the Government e-Marketplace (GeM), the government is providing Delhi’s small businesses and entrepreneurs with a large and transparent platform to participate in government procurement.
Growing GeM procurement brings national recognition to Delhi
In recognition of the growing use of GeM in Delhi’s government procurement and the increasing participation in services procurement, Delhi has been honoured under the ‘Sustained Services Procurement Adoption’ category. The recognition acknowledges the growing share of services procured through GeM and the sustained efforts of Delhi’s government buyers to realise the benefits of the platform. It also recognises Delhi’s significant contribution to the growth of GeM and its efforts to effectively adopt the platform for government procurement.
Steady rise in procurement through GeM
According to GeM data, procurement worth ₹1,595 crore was recorded in the financial year 2026-27 up to July, 156 per cent higher than the ₹624 crore recorded during the corresponding period last year. The increase reflects the growing market and opportunities available to Delhi’s small businesses. In FY 2025-26, total government procurement through GeM in Delhi stood at ₹4,311 crore, an increase of 41 per cent over FY 2024-25. Of this, procurement from MSEs accounted for around ₹2,177 crore.
The participation of small businesses in government procurement has also grown steadily over the past few years. Procurement from MSEs stood at around ₹965 crore in FY 2021-22 and rose to ₹2,177 crore in FY 2025-26. Nearly 95 per cent of orders received by Delhi-based sellers in FY 2025-26 came from buyers in the Central government and other states. This is giving Delhi’s MSMEs an opportunity to move beyond the local market and take their products and services to customers across the country.
Boost for women, SC/ST entrepreneurs and startups
The participation of women entrepreneurs, SC/ST entrepreneurs and startups is also increasing as the Delhi government works to make its government procurement system more inclusive. In FY 2025-26, procurement worth ₹315 crore was made through GeM from women entrepreneurs, ₹41 crore from SC/ST entrepreneurs and ₹405 crore from startups. The government’s effort is to ensure that the benefits of government procurement are not limited to large businesses, but that small businesses, women entrepreneurs, new startups and entrepreneurs from different sections also get equal opportunities.
Digital procurement makes the system simpler and more transparent
With the entire procurement process taking place online through GeM, government procurement becomes more transparent, competitive and faster. The platform offers options such as direct purchase, L-1 purchase, bidding/reverse auction, forward auction and other procurement methods. It also provides facilities such as online orders, seller assessment, online billing and payments, MIS reporting, and an AI/ML-based irregularity detection system. These features make the entire procurement process more organised and transparent.
Training and handholding support for businesses
The Delhi government’s efforts are not limited to providing the platform. It is also focusing on training and capacity building for GeM users and government departments. More than 65 training programmes were organised in FY 2025-26, with over 3,600 people participating. These included district-level training programmes for the Education Department, training for major hospitals and a GeM awareness week at the Delhi Secretariat. The GeM team is also providing continuous handholding and support to departments so that more government procurement takes place through GeM and MSMEs can derive the full benefit of the platform.
Monitoring and reviews to further strengthen the system
A monthly review system has been established between the Delhi government’s Finance Department and GeM. It reviews trends in government procurement, tenders issued outside GeM and upcoming procurement requirements. Going forward, the government will focus on increasing the use of GeM, monitoring prices and quality, resolving complaints, addressing delays in payments and strengthening the capacity of MSMEs. The use of new features such as the savings dashboard, irregularity detection system and global tenders is also being expanded for this purpose.
Chief Minister Smt. Rekha Gupta said MSMEs are not just businesses but the strong foundation of employment, innovation and the local economy. Making government procurement digital and transparent is giving small businesses an opportunity to access large institutional markets. The rising procurement through GeM, increasing participation of MSMEs, expanding opportunities for women entrepreneurs and startups, and orders coming to Delhi’s businesses from across the country reflect a significant change in this direction. The Delhi government is committed to ensuring that every MSME gets opportunities, every entrepreneur gets access to a transparent market, and every small business gets a strong platform to grow.
