Guidelines Issued For Arbitration And Mediation In Contracts For Public Procurement

By an office memorandum dated June 3, 2024, the Ministry of Finance, Government of India has issued guidelines to government entities and agencies including central public sector enterprises (“CPSEs”), public sector banks (“PSBs”), and government companies in contracts for domestic procurement (“Guidelines”). These Guidelines have been issued inter alia  in the context of the enactment of the Mediation Act, 2023 (“Act”), the government's experience of arbitration in respect of contracts where the government is a party, the peculiarities of the government as a litigant, the expenses involved in arbitrations, and routine challenges to arbitral awards.

The Guidelines issued by the government are below: