(1) The procuring entity and all officers or employees of the procuring entity, whether involved in the procurement process or otherwise or other persons involved, directly or indirectly, in any way in a procurement process, shall maintain an unimpeachable standard of integrity both inside and outside their office as prescribed under subsections (1) and (2) of section 11 of the Act, Central Civil Services (Conduct) Rules, 1964, All India Services (Conduct) Rules, 1968 or the Assam Civil Service (Conduct) Rules, 1965 or the relevant conduct rules by whatever name called or any other law or code as applicable to them and also shall:-
(i) act strictly in accordance with the provisions of the Act, these rules or instructions and guidelines issued under the Act and these rules;
(ii) not allow and prevent any bidder to have access to information on a particular procurement, before such information is available to the public at large;
(iii) not use or include unnecessarily restrictive or “tailored” specifications, terms of reference, statements of work, limitations or terms and conditions that may discourage wide competition or unnecessarily exclude certain categories of prospective bidders from participation;
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(iv) not solicit or accept any bribe, reward, gift or any material benefit or solicit promise of any future employment, whether direct or indirect, from anyone who has sought or is seeking or likely to seek procurement from the procuring entity or, correspondingly, offer or give bribe, reward, gift or any material benefit or promise any future employment to any procuring entity from whom procurement is sought or is being sought or is likely to be sought;
(v) not have a financial interest in any bidder responding to a bidding process of the procuring entity and any such person having financial or other interest in any bidder shall not participate or be involved in that procurement process in any way;
(vi) not disclose proprietary and source selection information, directly or indirectly, to any person other than a person authorised to receive such information;
(vii) treat all bidders in a fair and equitable manner in line with the principle of fairness, integrity and transparency in the procurement process;
(viii) provide all bidders identical information together, that is ,at the same time, during the bidding process;
(ix) apply the same criteria of evaluation as specified in the bidding documents, bidder registration documents or pre-qualification documents and under no circumstances introduce or apply new evaluation criteria during the evaluation process;
(x) not entertain any favour, recreation, presents, services, etc. from the bidders or prospective bidders;
(xi) protect the interests of the procuring entity and the State Government under all circumstances while dealing with information and information sources;
(xii) maintain the confidentially of all bids;
(xiii) ensure that the selection of bidder is as per the bidding documents and is not influenced by personal or private reasons attributable to the officials in any manner;
(xiv) disclose conflict of interest, if any forthwith; and
(xv) not to act in contravention of the code of integrity laid down in section 11 of the Act and prescribed herein.
(2) The bidders and their representatives or consultants or service providers participating in a procurement process shall maintain an unimpeachable standard of integrity as prescribed under sub-section (2) of section 11 of the Act, failing which the procuring 15 entity or the State Government may take appropriate measures as prescribed under clause (3) sub-section (2) of section 11 of the Act.