Sitharaman: 12 states on track to improve ease of doing biz

Uttarakhand, Rajasthan lead the reforms implementation charts

Twelve states have fulfilled 75 per cent of the requirements to improve ease of doing business.

Speaking at an investors’ summit organised by the CII, Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said while 12 states had shown good progress in implementing reforms laid down by the Centre, others are still lagging. Uttarakhand occupies the top spot in terms of implementing policies to facilitate business, followed by Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Telangana, and Madhya Pradesh.

The results are based on an online dashboard created by the department of industrial policy and promotion (DIPP) that tracks implementation in real time. The dashboard updates rankings every time a response by a state is validated by the DIPP.

The other states that have implemented more than 75 per cent of all reforms are Haryana, Chhatisgarh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Punjab and Karnataka. States traditionally weak in this regard such as Arunachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, and Meghalaya have scores of zero on a scale of 100. Originally conceived under the Make In India campaign, a 98-point action plan for easing the regulatory framework for business at the state level was prepared by the DIPP in December 2014. A wider action plan was released in September 2015 covering 340 points.

States are bound to implement the reforms on time and submit their responses to clarifications sought by the DIPP. The final date for submission, earlier slated for August 31, has been extended to September 30.

The government’s business reform action plan covers 10 areas like access to information, transparency enablers and land availability. Departments like commercial tax, energy, labour and environment have been covered.

India provides evidence to the World Bank on the ease of doing business as it seeks to break into the list of top 100 countries. India ranks 130 in the World Bank’s global rankings. This year's rankings will be announced in October. Last month, a team of researchers spent two weeks in Delhi and Mumbai to study the implementation of reforms.

Specific areas the DIPP has targeted are starting a business, insolvency procedures, construction permits, ease of trade, and electricity connections. According to the DIPP, the number of days required to start a business has been reduced to 12 from 29 in the previous year.

Sitharaman said tax and regulatory authorities were being asked not to go on an overdrive and asserted the government was not there to obstruct or create hindrances.

“Regulatory quality will improve but not the frequency and intensity,” she said. REPORT CARD
States to have implemented 75% of all business reforms

• Uttarakhand
• Rajasthan
• Jharkhand
• Telangana
• Madhya Pradesh
• Haryana
• Chhattisgarh
• Maharashtra
• Andhra Pradesh
• Gujarat
• Punjab
• Karnataka

The laggards

• Mizoram
• Sikkim
• Arunachal Pradesh
• J&K
• Meghalaya