Para 2.3.3 — NONCONSULT_MANUAL

2.3.4. Need assessment, Formulation of Terms of Reference, and Procurement Planning - Risks and Mitigations

Risk Mitigation 1. Need is either artificially created or exaggerated, with the intention to channel benefits to an individual or an organisation. For example, demand is created for a good that is not needed simply to benefit the company’s owner. Keep records and involve stakeholders: Records of decision making, and data used should be kept. Involve procurement and finance functions at this stage also. End user and stakeholder consultations should be part of the process. 2. Delays in the Assessment of Need and generation of Indent for Procurement may lead to shortcut procurement procedures that dilute transparency and prevent the achievement of value for money. It may also lead to delays in the delivery of services. Need assessment should be done sufficiently in advance of the time when services are required. In the case of urgent requirements, the urgency certificate should be approved by the authority empowered to grant administrative approval for the indent, recording justification – why the need could not be formulated earlier. 3. The estimate of the costs may be inadequate. This may lead to inadequate response from the bidders and may delay finalisation of procurement. It may also adversely affect the quality of supplies. Estimates of procurement should be prepared with due diligence, keeping in view inflation, technology changes, profit margins etc.

2. Procuring Entities may lay down a schedule of powers for administrative and budgetary approval of procurement proposals for services. Before granting such approvals, it should be certified that funds in the budget are available and liability for this procurement proposal is noted against the total available budget.

2.3.3. Final Administrative and Budgetary Approvals 1. The Services and Activities Schedule shall be compatible with the available budget. The most important step is to determine whether all tasks required to achieve the desired output have been included. The next step is to determine whether an adequate budget has been allocated to implement the services as proposed. Since the budget may be fixed or limited, a series of iterations may be required before a final, acceptable Services and Activities Schedule is formulated. CA's approval may be taken for the Procurement before proceeding ahead. After administrative approval, provision may be made in the Budget, or if that is not feasible, additional confirmation at the time of seeking Administrative approval may be taken from the CA for inclusion in the Revised Estimate stage of the Budget. Procurement should be initiated only after such approvals and budgetary provisions.

Manual for Procurement of Non-Consultancy Services, 2025

Risk Mitigation 4. Need Description/ Specifications and terms of reference are disproportionate to the need identified or made to tilt in favour of one or a group of vendor

(s) or contractor

(s) to artificially restrict competition. Use a formal market discovery tool: Prebid conference and/ or well publicised EoI may be used for discovery of the market. Otherwise, encourage and invite comments on the technical and commercial conditions in the tender document or hold pre-bid 5. Asymmetric dissemination of vital need conference. information: Dialogue for determining solutions available in the market is held only with selected prospective bidders, giving them an undue advantage in preparing for the bidding. Selected prospective bidders get access to inside information not disclosed or disclosed late to others.