India's ranking may improve significantly in ease of business index: DIPP

DIPP Secretary Ramesh Abhishek expected the country's ranking to improve on the back of reforms initiated by the government

India's ranking may improve significantly in the World Bank's ease of doing business report on the back of reforms initiated by the government, a top official said on Thursday.

The World Bank's 'ease of doing business' survey 2018 is slated to be released on October 31.

"We have worked very hard so we are definitely expecting," DIPP Secretary Ramesh Abhishek told PTI when asked if the country's ranking would improve.

"The World Bank's Doing Business report is going to come out on 31 October and we hope to see a significant improvement because of the large number of work that we have done," Abhishek said.

Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu had recently hinted about the same, saying the country would soon hear "good news" on the ease of doing business front.

The government's optimism regarding the improvement in India's rank comes on the back of reforms taken to improve the efficiency in granting construction permits, starting a business and resolving insolvency.

The ease of doing business ranking is taken seriously by participating countries as they believe it plays a key role in helping foreign investors decide where to invest.

In the last three-and-a-half years, India has received foreign direct investment (FDI) of above $170 billion, the DIPP secretary pointed out.

India's rank inched up by just one place to 130 in the last year's survey that measures the ease of doing business in various countries.