More than 2.36 crore national flags worth over Rs 60 crore were procured by different government departments and states from public buying portal Government e-Marketplace (GeM) from 1 July to 15 August, according to official data.
These procurements were carried out for the 'Har Ghar Tiranga' campaign.
The GeM was launched on 9 August 2016 by the commerce ministry to create an open and transparent procurement platform for government buyers.
The platform is open for procurement by all government buyers – central and state ministries, departments, public sector enterprises, autonomous institutions and local bodies.
‘No History of Procurement at Such a Scale’: CEO
GeM CEO PK Singh said, "By virtue of being an online platform it was possible for GeM to rapidly onboard sellers and meet very large requirements for an item that has had no history of procurement at such a scale. The team at GeM regularly interacted with buyer entities to ensure that the procurement process was smooth, and delivery was made in time."
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday, 15 August, that public response to his government's 'Har Ghar Tiranga' campaign is an indication of the revival of the country's collective conscience and its strength, which even "big socialists and experts of social science" cannot imagine.
The PM had given a call on 22 July to strengthen the 'Har Ghar Tiranga' movement by hoisting or displaying the national flag at homes.
As many as 4,159 sellers have registered at the GeM platform to supply the flags.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)