Public procurement forms a significant part of government activity. To improve this function, the government of India launched the one stop Government e-Market Place or the GeM portal. The platform is robust and caters to various requirements of buyers and sellers. It is also equipped with a GeM portal customer care segment to address any queries or complaints users might have.
The GeM portal is now integrated with the Central Public Procurement portal for government tenders. The objective is to make it easier for eligible suppliers to find relevant government tenders and bid. There is also the GeM portal help section to assist users with queries.
Why register on the GeM portal? Facilities offered by GeM:
- Listing of products for individual, prescribed categories of goods/ services of common use
- Looking, estimating, comparing, and buying facility on dynamic pricing basis
- Market place buying of majority of common user items
- Buying goods and services online, as and when required
- Single window system for aggregating demands and ordering
In this article, we will discuss the basic support mechanism for users on the GeM portal, the customer care support available, the GeM portal customer care numbers and how to raise a ticket and escalate the matter for resolution.
What is the support mechanism for users offered by the GeM portal?
The GeM is supported by a well-equipped contact centre that handles different queries users have. The GeM contact centre supports both inbound and outbound customer communications across different communication channels i.e., telephone, chat, email and social media.
As the contact centre services stakeholders across different geographical regions in India, it is equipped to communicate in English, Hindi, and other regional languages. The portal also has an escalation matrix with well-defined SLAs to ensure users receive expert help within defined timelines.
What are the options available to reach out to customer care?
In order to connect to customer care for any queries and complaints you can go through the following options listed below:
- FAQ: If you have general queries related to buying and selling on the GeM portal, you can browse through the FAQs available under different sections like Buyer, Sellers, Incidents, Service and Forward Auction. Select the relevant field and find answers regarding registration, procurement modes, order management, payment processing, bid/RA participation, etc.
- Video tutorial: Apart from FAQs, the ‘Contact Us’ section helps both buyers and sellers get access to videos on how to register on the portal, procurement modes for products and services, order processing and payments among others.
- Support: If a user does not find the help he needs from the above two sections, he can reach out to the customer care through different modes of communication. The details of the same are given below.
- Ticket: This is another option to reach out to the customer care at the GeM portal. Users can raise a ticket to report their issue and get resolution within 48 hours. More details are shared below on how to raise a ticket.
- Feedback: A feedback form for specific and general comments (email and phone number required to provide feedback).
- Document Help: Information about the different file formats used on the portal and the necessary plug-ins required to browse and access the portal.
If none of the above means of support work for you, you can also reach out to the next level of authorities. You can either escalate your problem to the Web Information Manager or write to important functionary officers whose designation and contact details are shared on the portal.
Let us discuss the two modes of customer care in detail.
How to register a complaint in GeM support?
As a user you can reach out to the GeM portal through any of the following ways of communication:
- Email at the email ID given
- Call at the various GeM portal helpline toll-free numbers
The portal also offers designated numbers for specific sectors like defence and railways. Users can even personally visit the GeM portal help desk at the address given below and resolve their complaints/queries.
- Mail us at: helpdesk-gem[at]gov[dot]in
- Toll Free Numbers (Inbound): 1800-419-3436 / 1800-102-3436 (9:00 am – 10:00 pm Mon to Sat)
- HelpDesk Outbound Nos: 07556681401, 07556685120, 01169095625
- Railway Helpline: 011-44022666
- Defence Helpline: 0755-6681450
- Walk-in address for Help desk: 2nd Floor, Jeevan Tara Building, 5-Sansad Marg, Near Patel Chowk, New Delhi-110001
How to raise a ticket on the GeM portal?
Many a times, you may not get the resolution of your complaint through calls and emails from the GeM portal support team. In such cases, consider registering your complaint by raising a ticket for a comprehensive resolution.
In order to raise a ticket, follow the steps below:
- Visit the GeM portal and click on the ‘Raise a Ticket’ tab on the top right corner (Login not required to raise a ticket)
- View the ‘Welcome to GeM Support Desk’ in a new page (there are three tabs – check ticket status, raise a ticket, and escalate your ticket)
- Select the ‘Raise your ticket’ option and fill in the required information (fields with red asterisk (*) symbol are mandatory)
- Enter the User ID for being navigated to a page where you need to enter your full name, mobile number and select the category from the drop-down list (e.g., if you are a buyer, you will find options like order, registration, feedback and suggestion, procurement, etc.)
- Select what is application to you
- Update the issue type from the drop-down options like order creation related, delay in delivery etc.
- Enter the subject and a detailed description of the issue
- Attach screenshots of the issue you are facing
- Press the create ticket button to raise the ticket
- Receive the Ticket ID (you can use this to follow up on your ticket status using the tab – check ticket status)
If you are not happy with the resolution or are expecting delays in the resolution, you can use the third tab – ‘Escalate your ticket’.
To sum up: How to effectively use the GeM portal to find tenders
The aim of the GeM portal is to improve efficiency in public procurement and make the process more transparent. It was set up to replicate the offline market on its online platform to bring together MSMEs, individual suppliers, and service providers on a common platform. If you want to grow your business, you can consider registering on the GeM portal and start bidding for winning government tenders.
To get information on active tenders and stay updated on the new tender releases, you can also register on ‘Tenders & Quotations’ section at the Tata nexarc portal.
At Tata nexarc, our goal is to help MSMEs find new opportunities and accelerate growth. Our offering – ‘Tenders & Quotations’ – comes with 1.3 lakh+ tenders, making it possible for businesses to find relevant tenders, get alerts, and never miss an opportunity.
