New Delhi, July 30: Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) have once again fallen short of the Government’s mandatory procurement target from Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST)-owned Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs), even as overall procurement from MSEs reached a record high during 2025-26.
According to a written reply tabled in the Lok Sabha by Minister of State for MSME Shobha Karandlaje, CPSEs procured goods and services worth ₹2,36,087.44 crore during 2025-26, of which ₹1,15,798.39 crore (49.04%) was sourced from MSEs. This is well above the mandatory procurement target of 25% under the Public Procurement Policy.
However, procurement from SC/ST-owned MSEs accounted for only ₹3,984.29 crore, or 1.69% of total procurement, far below the prescribed target of 4%. The data show that the target has remained unmet throughout the last five financial years. Procurement from SC/ST-owned enterprises stood at 0.79% in 2021-22, 0.89% in 2022-23, 1.04% in 2023-24, 1.73% in 2024-25, and 1.69% in 2025-26.
In contrast, procurement from women-owned MSEs improved steadily from 1.04% in 2021-22 to 3.84% in 2025-26, exceeding the mandatory target of 3% for the first time.
The Ministry informed Parliament that compliance with the Public Procurement Policy is reviewed in collaboration with the Department of Public Enterprises. However, the reply did not specify any new corrective measures to address the persistent shortfall in procurement from SC/ST-owned enterprises. While CPSEs have significantly expanded purchases from MSEs overall, the objective of ensuring greater participation of SC/ST entrepreneurs in government procurement remains largely unfulfilled.
