Govt procures Rs. 49k-cr goods & services from MSMEs in FY22

Timely Buying Support

• Almost 93% of purchases were, however, made by just nine out of the total of 54 ministries

• Maximum purchases were made by the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas. The total sum was Rs 23,037.44 crore, exceeding the target of Rs 13,161.88 cr

• Next was the Ministry of Defence, with Rs 5,692.25 crore, against the target of Rs 2,745.39 cr

• Steel Ministry made purchases worth Rs 3,505.87 cr, whereas the target was Rs 2019.89 cr

• In the case of the Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, the corresponding figures were Rs 3,120.97 cr and Rs 2,486.47 cr

New Delhi: In 2021-22, the central government ministries purchased goods and services worth Rs49,453.24 crore from micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). This was about 35.4 per cent of the total procurement by the ministries, according to official sources.

Almost 93 per cent of the purchases were, however, made by just nine out of the total of 54 ministries. Exactly half of the total ministries didn't buy anything from MSMEs. Interestingly, as many as 26 ministries were not even given any targets.

Maximum purchases, almost half of the total from MSMEs, were made by the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas. The total sum was Rs 23,037.44 crore, exceeding the target of Rs 13,161.88 crore. Next was the Ministry of Defence, with Rs 5,692.25 crore, against the target of Rs 2,745.39 crore.

Another big buyer was the Ministry of Power, with Rs 4,423.03 crore, crossing the target of Rs 2,588.82 crore. The Ministry of Steel made purchases worth Rs 3,505.87 crore, whereas the target was Rs 2019.89 crore.

In the case of the Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, the corresponding figures were Rs 3,120.97 crore and Rs 2,486.47 crore. The Ministry of Coal made purchases from MSMEs worth Rs 2,314.88, against the target of Rs 3,539.52 crore.

The Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution bought products from MSMEs worth Rs 1,659.10 crore, while the target was Rs 640 crore. The Ministry of Atomic Energy was next, with purchases worth Rs 1,597.45 crore against the target of Rs 516.55 crore.

For the Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers, the corresponding figures wereRs 1,011.88 crore and Rs 1,193.01 crore. It may be recalled that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has emphasized his government's support for MSMEs on a number of occasions. For instance, in a post-budget webinar, he had said, "Government has announced a Rs 6,000-crore Raising and Accelerating MSME Performance (RAMP) programme for MSMEs."

Federation of Indian Micro and Small & Medium Enterprises (Fisme) secretary general Anil Bhardwaj was delighted to know about the quantum of purchases made by the Central government: "It is heartening to see that the Central government has purchased 35.4 per cent of goods and services, way above the 25 per cent mandatory target, from MSMEs. It has greatly helped MSMEs to tide over the rough Covid phase." He, however, desires an even better response from the government: "The fact that just nine ministries account for over 90 per cent of procurement highlights the need for diversity and inclusivity. Most procurement agencies tend to miss the sub-targets for procurement from women (3 per cent) and SC/ST (4 per cent) within MSMEs' 25 per cent."