Government of Karnataka to set up online e-procurement platform

BANGALORE: In a new e-governance initiative, all contracts and procurement in various government departments in Karnataka are set to go digital in two years.

The Government of Karnataka has chosen HP to provide a unified online e-procurement platform.

This program will cover contract management, track the progress of projects and would run on a public private partnership model. As of now, Andhra Pradesh is the only state in the country to have an e-procurement platform.

Balu Doraiswamy, MD, HP India sales, said that this would be more complex than just deployment. “This is proven technology that we have developed inside HP. It has been deployed in Japan and would now be customized to suit the Government’s needs. The Karnataka Government deals with procurement to the tune of Rs 13,000 crore.

The platform would facilitate government procurement activities like publishing of tenders/RFP, bidding online, empanelment of suppliers and contractors, contract management and demand aggregation. The project also involves training for not just the Government staff but also contractors and suppliers in rural and urban areas. To facilitate access to the system, the Government plans to set up cybercafes at the taluk and sub-taluk levels in a public-private partnership model.

Rajeev Chawla, secretary, e-governance, said that shared business centers would be set up in government departments at the taluk level.

“The system would enable accessibility, transparency and reduction in corruption,” said Dr Malathi Das, chief secretary, Government of Karnataka.

The pilot phase would be carried out in departments like the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, Krishna Bhagya Jal Nigam and Karnataka Drugs Logistics and Warehousing Society.

© CyberMedia News