GFR Rule 145, Purchase by Purchase Committee

GFR Rule 145 governs central government procurement in the value band between Rs 25,000 and Rs 2.5 lakh. It requires the purchase to be made after obtaining at least three quotations from local suppliers and, for amounts above a locally specified sub-threshold, through a purchase committee of at least three members.

What is GFR Rule 145 in government procurement?

Rule 145 sits between direct local purchase (Rule 144, up to Rs 25,000) and open tender (Rule 146, above Rs 2.5 lakh). It introduces the first element of competition, multiple quotes, while keeping the process simple enough for routine departmental purchases without the overhead of a full tender.

Under Rule 145, the department must:

1. Identify at least three suppliers capable of supplying the required goods.
2. Obtain written or oral quotations from them.
3. Evaluate the quotes and award to the lowest quoter (L1), subject to the purchase committee's approval.

The purchase committee requirement adds a check on individual officer discretion. For amounts above the sub-threshold specified in departmental delegation-of-powers schedules, a committee of at least three officers (typically including a finance member) must approve the purchase. This reduces the risk of favoritism in small-value procurement, a historically common source of petty corruption.

As with Rule 144, the GeM mandate under Rule 149 applies here too: if the goods are on GeM, the purchase must be made through GeM's RFQ mechanism (system-selected three sellers), which effectively automates the three-quotation process electronically.

Splitting a Rs 4 lakh requirement into two Rs 2 lakh transactions to avoid open tender is explicitly prohibited. CVC audit teams specifically look for sequential purchase orders to the same vendor within the same financial year that together exceed the open tender threshold.

Why it matters for bidders

For suppliers, Rule 145 purchases are largely relationship-driven for off-GeM goods: the department needs to know about you to include you in its informal three-quotation process. Being on department-specific vendor registries, empanelment lists, or rate contracts puts you in the pool. Being absent from these lists means being systematically excluded from this segment of demand.

On GeM, Rule 145 purchases are formalized through the GeM RFQ tool, which selects three sellers automatically from the relevant category. Maintaining an accurate, competitively priced GeM catalogue is the non-relationship route to participating in this procurement band.

Example

A central government hospital needs to purchase a medical sterilization kit worth Rs 1.8 lakh. The stores officer identifies three medical equipment suppliers, requests quotations, and receives three responses at Rs 1.65 lakh, Rs 1.72 lakh, and Rs 1.90 lakh. A three-member purchase committee reviews the quotes, verifies that the lowest quotation meets the technical specification, and approves the purchase from the Rs 1.65 lakh supplier. If the kit were listed on GeM, the officer would instead use GeM's RFQ tool and the process would be digital.

Key rules / thresholds

• Applicable range: Rs 25,000 to Rs 2.5 lakh.
• Minimum three quotations required from local suppliers.
• Purchase committee of at least three officers required for the upper end of this range.
• GeM-first: items on GeM must be purchased through GeM RFQ, not by direct outreach to vendors.
• Splitting purchases to stay within this threshold is prohibited and constitutes an audit violation.
• Above Rs 2.5 lakh, open tender (Rule 146) is mandatory.