In Chhattisgarh, the government’s GeM (Government e-Marketplace) portal, which is used for purchasing goods, is now at the centre of a major controversy. Instead of medicines and basic items, there are allegations of buying super expensive TVs, jugs, and sofas, and this has started a major political fight between Congress and the BJP. 

The latest shock comes from the Korea district, where five smart TVs were allegedly bought for nearly ₹10 lakh each, adding up to around ₹50 lakh. Congress says these were not for any important setup, but were bought under the Tribal Development Department from a firm in Baikunthpur.

Before this, another strange purchase made headlines: water jugs costing ₹32,999 each. As per Congress, 160 jugs were ordered by the Balodabazar Tribal Welfare Department, costing over ₹51 lakh. Congress leader Deepak Baij called this a sign of deep corruption. However, the Tribal Welfare Department replied, saying the jug order was never completed. They claim it was only proposed by a former officer and later cancelled in February 2025 due to high prices.

The Tribal Welfare Minister has responded to the opposition's allegations by saying, "Why the panic? Check the facts first. When no purchase was made, what’s the point of blaming us? Congress seems to be panicking."

What made it more bizarre?

In Sakti district, the Chief Medical and Health Officer (CMHO) reportedly placed an order for calcium D3 tablets on the GeM portal, but the product details matched those of a sofa instead. Yes, a two-seater sofa,  60 inches long, 635 inches wide (yes, really), and 55 inches tall was listed in a medical supply order.

When NDTV contacted the supplier, VJ Enterprise, the manager said, "We only deal in medicines. I don't know anything about a sofa. The staff handles these things, we’ll check." Health Minister Shyam Bihari Jaiswal has promised to investigate the Sofa issue: "We will look into it, and action will be taken if anyone is found guilty."
At the same time, a bigger issue continues to hang over Chhattisgarh Medical Services Corporation (CGMSC), where over ₹750 crore worth of scams related to medical supplies and equipment are under investigation. So far, six people have been arrested by the ACB and EOW in this case.