Centre introduces measures to reduce ‘compliance burden’ to increase ease of doing business

The Centre on Tuesday said that it has adopted measures to reduce compliance burden by means of simplification, elimination and decriminalisation of several laws. Union minister Piyush Goyal while speaking at a workshop organised by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) said that this move will have a transformative impact and multiplier effect on ease of doing business.

He said that the mindset for entrepreneurs evolved from ‘not able to understand complexities’ to ‘it is so simple to start a business’. “Numerous regulatory compliances only confused the new prospects & built hesitation in investors but today we are creating a most conducive environment for entrepreneurs,” Goyal said.

He said that the launch of the National Single Window System (NSWS) shows Centre’s commitment to simplify and rationalise things. The NSWS hosts approvals across 18 central departments and 9 states. He said that 14 more central departments and 5 states will be added by the end of this year.

“By June 2021, almost 23,000 processes have been put in these four buckets. So 23,000 reforms have happened out of those 70,000 odd which were listed out (by a third party),” Anurag Jain, secretary of the DPIIT, said at the event.

The Centre said that it implemented a series of reforms to ease compliance burden on citizens and businesses.

The Centre said that it has removed the distinction between domestic and international OSP (other service providers). It said the move will allow Indian telecom service providers serving foreign counterparts to register as an OSP. “Allowed sharing of EPABX and PSTN lines by domestic and international centers. This provides massive growth thrust to BPO, BPM and ITeS organizations providing voice-based services in India,” the Centre said in a statement.

The Centre said that it has now allowed private, public entities and research institutes to collect, process, store, publish and share geospatial data and services including maps enabling an Indian firm offer world class geo spatial service such as Google maps. “Liberalized access to geospatial data helps stakeholders plan better for infrastructure projects, protection from natural calamities and enables environment protection. Reduced reliance on foreign resources and technology for geo spatial mapping,” the government said.

It said that ‘Mera Ration’ mobile app has been introduced to help users identify nearest fair price shops. “Ration cards made portable minimizing compliance pain of migrant beneficiaries in availing their food grain quota. Facility covers more than 75 Crore beneficiaries under National Food Security Act (NFSA) covering almost 94.3% of NFSA population,” it said.

The government also said that it has simplified the online Aadhaar validation process for at least 18 services associated with Driving License (DL), Registration Certificate (RC), transfer of ownership, international driving permit, hire-purchase, etc. “Registration Certificate now issued at the dealer location itself. Vehicle registration can be done anywhere in the state (Maharashtra, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal) vis-a-vis earlier process wherein it could be done only at respective RTO,” it announced.

“Digital Infrastructure for Knowledge Sharing user interface developed to enable learners and teachers across the country to access curricula of NCERT, CBSE and SCERTs online. 1.85 lakh pieces of e-content on-boarded and high traffic on the portal (~2,400 crore hits since lockdown) showcases its increased usage,” it further added.

The government also said that it launched the Samadhan portal to empower MSMEs across the country to register and track grievances related to delayed payment and settlement of disputes. “ CHAMPIONS portal launched by the Prime Minister for speedy redressal of grievances of MSMEs. Over 37,000 grievances redressed (by August 21) with a reply rate of more than 99%. Sampark portal launched to help connect jobseekers (passed out trainees and students of MSME technology centers) to recruiters. More than 4.73 lakh jobseekers and more than 6,200 recruiters are registered on the portal till date,” it said.

The government further said that the department of consumer affairs launched the BIS Care app to check authenticity of ISI marked and hallmarked products and also allow citizens to lodge complaints against fraudulent products using the app.