HC notes bidder shortfall, re-tender likely for CIMS

Raipur: The Chhattisgarh high court on Wednesday sought further clarity from the Chhattisgarh Medical Services Corporation Ltd (CGMSC) regarding the status of bidders in the procurement of medical equipment for the Chhattisgarh Institute of Medical Sciences (CIMS), Bilaspur. This request came after observing that several equipment categories failed to attract the mandatory minimum number of bidders.A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Ramesh Sinha and Justice Bibhu Datta Guru examined a personal affidavit submitted by the Managing Director of CGMSC in compliance with the court's earlier order dated Dec 9, 2025. As per the affidavit, CGMSC floated a GeM tender on Oct 11, 2025, for the procurement of medical equipment for CIMS. The tender covered five distinct categories of equipment, each of which was required to be independently evaluated in accordance with procurement norms to determine whether a minimum of three bidders qualified in the technical evaluation stage.The affidavit stated that in two categories—Radiology Equipment (Schedule-2) and Critical Care Equipment-1 (Schedule-3)—four and three bidders respectively participated. CGMSC informed the court that claim-objection notices (dawa-appatti) were issued on December 16, granting three days to the bidders to submit clarifications in line with GeM policy. These objections were uploaded on both the GeM portal and the CGMSC website, and the final outcome in these categories would be determined only after scrutiny of the replies.CGMSC further clarified that if, upon evaluation, at least three bidders are found technically qualified in these two categories, the first-call tender process would proceed without delay. However, if the number of qualified bidders falls below the prescribed minimum, the tender would stand vitiated and a re-tender would be issued within two weeks.Significantly, the affidavit admitted that in three other categories—Lab Equipment (Schedule-1), Critical Care Equipment-2 (Schedule-4), and Other Equipment (Schedule-5)—fewer than three bidders participated. As this was the first-call tender, CGMSC stated that it would issue a second call for these categories within two weeks, following due procedure.Taking note of these submissions, the high court observed that the affidavit itself indicated the inevitability of a re-tender for the three categories where the minimum bidder requirement was not met. The bench accordingly directed the CGMSC Managing Director to file a fresh affidavit clarifying whether bidders have been finalised in respect of any of the equipment categories.