Green Public Procurement in India and Charting Pathways for a Cleaner Future

For India, public procurement spending amounts to 20% to 22% of its GDP which equals about USD 500 billion annually. India stands at a crossroads of choosing between business-as-usual and green approaches to its growth trajectory.

The Government of India has used public procurement as a tool to advance social and environmental goals through purchase preferences involving MSEs and mandates involving BEE Star rated appliances. Rule 153 of the General Financial Rules brought out by the Ministry of Finance, provides for purchase preference to MSEs. Rule 173 provides for consideration of environmental criteria in procurement decision-making along with mandating procurement of electrical appliances which carry the notified threshold or higher Star Rating of Bureau of Energy Efficiency.

The Ministry of Finance in January 2013 through an office memorandum mandated that only energy efficient appliances may be procured by ministries/ departments in respect of split air conditioners, frost free refrigerators, ceiling fans, and water heaters (Ministry of Finance, 2013).

With the above background, TERI is organizing an Act4Earth Dialogue on green public procurement to deliberate and come forward with solutions for strengthening India’s public procurement ecosystem.