Use single window clearance system, else it would be closed: Goyal to industry

Union Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday exhorted the industry to use the single-window clearance system or else the government would consider closing the scheme. The National Single Window System (NSWS) is a digital platform to guide the industry in identifying and applying for approvals according to business requirements.

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The portal hosts applications for approvals from 32 central departments and 29 state governments. "The choice is now with you (industry). If you feel that you are not interested in it...I am spending a lot of money on it and I have come to a stage where I am inclined to abort the entire idea," the Commerce and Industry Minister said in his address at the second DPIIT-CII National Conference on Ease of Doing Business. Goyal further said NSWS may not be perfect, but he was open to suggestions from the industry to improve it.

He also expressed his dismay over industry not showing the required interest in the national land bank created by the government. The minister reiterated that the government's NSWS guide for investors to identify and apply for approvals as per their business requirements needs inputs from the industry. Unless the industry is engaging with the National Single Window System, getting licenses through it, and also providing inputs to the Centre on it and the industrial land bank to make it better, the initiative will not succeed, he added.

Talking about Jan Vishwas 2.0 Bill, he said the government will try to provide retrospective benefits to the industry. "No retroactive negativity, only retroactive benefits on an optional basis. Please bear that in mind, I don't want to end up with the UPA-type situation where we cause a complete collapse of the trust in India's systems with retroactive taxation coming in and killing investor appetite to come to India. "Anything we do has to be positive if retroactive, if there is anything which hurts anybody it can only be prospective. That is the commitment that this government has made on the floor of Parliament," Goyal said.
The government, he added, is actively looking to decriminalise 300 more laws.

To support the 'Make in India' initiative, the central government has enacted the Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2023. With the primary objective of decriminalising minor offences across 42 central Acts, the Act eliminates 183 criminal provisions across 19 ministries/departments. He asked the industry to share their suggestions to make processes faster, easier, and more contemporary. Assured them of continued cooperation to help them 'Make in India for the world' smartly, competitively, and efficiently.

Goyal urged CII to sensitise its members to begin respecting the spirit of the law and highlighted that the tendency to make profits by exploiting legal loopholes is detrimental to the economy and ease of doing business. He also pointed out that technological upgradation in state and central-level government portals is required to make them more agile, faster, smarter and modern. The minister stressed the need to clamp down on the spreading of misinformation and urged the industry to recognise the problem areas and make simple changes that can have a pan-India impact.

Goyal also launched the CII Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) and Regulatory Affairs portal for getting insights into India's business environment and to receive and track suggestions for improvement.

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