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Focus Story With this consultative process for policy making in place, India Ease of  Enhance Renewable Manufacturing and Battery Storage
must act decisively across various key reform areas that are
critical to driving competitiveness and unleashing growth. Doing Business Expand solar, wind, battery, and HVDC manufacturing
India's Next Simplifying Despite improvements in global rankings, doing business in Streamlining of land and labour markets, two historically PLI outlay and R&D investment. Focus on critical minerals
through incentives, public-private joint ventures, increased
processing, recycling, and R&D partnerships to reduce
Regulation
import dependence.
Generation India’s regulatory environment remains complex. While the India remains complicated. India must enhance ease of doing constrained factors of production, is critical for expanding

investment, generating employment, and improving productivity.
business by creating an environment where businesses can
unleash their entrepreneurial energy.

Land
Reforms: A reform momentum has improved the landscape, regulations  Legislate Time-Bound, Faceless Service Delivery  Strengthen the India Industrial Land Bank (IILB) A time-bound, transparent, and efficient judiciary is critical to
still need to be streamlined to improve policy predictability

A national law should mandate service delivery timelines

and reduce the cost of compliance for businesses.
Strengthen and expand the IILB into a central platform not

for approvals and redressal, with penalties for

only for viewing available land but also for end-to-end
non-compliance. Businesses should be categorized into risk
 Expedite the formation of the High-Level Committee on

Competitiveness Regulatory Reforms tiers (green, amber, red), each with defined response  Create Integrated State Land Authorities contract enforcement, dispute resolution, and investor confidence.
allotment and approvals.

timelines in terms of compliance and closure of application,
 Fill Vacancies with Real-Time Tracking

To anchor wide-ranging reforms, the proposed High-Level
of 5 days for green tier firms and 30-90 days for amber and
Committee on Regulatory Reforms must have a wide
Establish digital dashboards to monitor judicial vacancies

States must form single-window integrated land authorities

red firms.
Agenda for mandate to review all clearances, approvals, licenses, and  Mandate Use of the National Single Window System  Digitize Change of Land Use and Registration  Adopt a National Litigation Policy
and ensure timely coordination between the judiciary and
responsible for all land-related functions, including zoning,
permits across the business lifecycle. The committee should
executive for appointments.
titling, and conversion, to reduce duplication and delays.

include industry leaders and regulatory experts, build on
(NSWS)

the work of prior advisory groups, and develop actionable
Introduce legislation mandating NSWS as the sole digital

recommendations for governments at all levels.
the Future  Institutionalize Regulatory Impact Assessments (RIAs)  Revamp Business Reform Action Plan (BRAP) Online certification with digital signatures and QR codes  Create a Central Tribunal Authority
Policy should reduce frivolous government litigation by
interface for all regulatory approvals and renewals. Central
must replace manual processes. Interdepartmental
setting thresholds for appeal and promoting settlement
and state systems should be integrated into a unified
through Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanisms.
integration is essential for seamless verification and
dashboard that monitors performance in real time.

RIAs should be made mandatory for all major policy

approvals.
decisions. These assessments must include cost-benefit

CII Suggestions analysis, risk mapping, and stakeholder feedback. NITI Aayog Shift BRAP from process-based to real-time, outcome-based  Rationalise stamp duty and registration charges This body would standardize governance across tribunals,
can serve as the coordinating agency, with each ministry

Rationalise and harmonize rates across states in the range
rankings. States should be ranked based on performance
ensure performance monitoring, and reduce case backlogs
establishing RIA cells for implementation.
providing dynamic insights into reform implementation.
 Harmonize MCA and SEBI Regulations indicators integrated with their online single-window systems, of 3-5 per cent to reduce financial burden on businesses. by allocating resources more efficiently.
 Move Towards Conclusive Land Titling  Expand Commercial Courts and ADR Councils
The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) and SEBI should  Simplify Construction Permits and Automate Approvals States should replace the current presumptive titling
I ndia stands at a pivotal moment in its development journey. outcomes that bring prosperity. Thus, building competitiveness align laws and regulatory requirements to avoid duplication Building permits should be granted through a unified online system with conclusive land titles backed by government States should set up more commercial courts, especially
in high-backlog districts. Simultaneously, expedite
and reduce costs for listed and unlisted companies. Unified
must be a comprehensive national strategy, one that is aimed

guarantees to minimize disputes.
Over the past decade, a series of reforms have strengthened
the foundations of the economy. With its sights set on towards a shared goal of becoming a developed economy. This digital reporting formats can significantly improve platform with automated design scrutiny using software the establishment of Arbitration and Mediation Councils
such as AutoDCR. Joint inspections should be scheduled via
of India.
becoming a Viksit Rashtra by 2047, now is the time for a young requires sweeping reforms and policy initiatives. regulatory clarity and efficiency. a common digital dashboard to avoid delays.  Introduce a dynamic land zoning plan
and dynamic India to build on these gains. This demands deep  Amend the Companies Act for Simplification and Dynamic and inclusive land zoning plans should be adopted,  Digitize and Integrate Judicial Data
structural reforms that accelerate the pace of economic Central to this is the need for a consultative approach to Decriminalization  Advance Risk-Based Inspections and Self-Certification moving towards a “negative list” approach that allows
transformation by enhancing national competitiveness. policymaking with institutional mechanisms for effective A central committee should identify low-risk areas suitable greater flexibility for land use based on evolving economic Strengthen the National Judicial Data Grid by mandating
cooperation and synergy between the various stakeholders viz. Simplify statutory procedures related to incorporation, for third-party or self-certification. A competitive needs. comprehensive reporting, refining case classification, and
Competitiveness is not just a measure of economic success; it all levels of government, private sector, academia, civil society mergers, and CSR reporting. Sections 118(12), 129(7), ecosystem of accredited third-party auditors should be enabling real-time ranking of state’s performance. Further,
is a broader reflection of how effectively a nation converts its and ordinary citizens. 186(13), and 222(2) of the Companies Act should be promoted to reduce over-reliance on manual inspections. create a parallel platform for ADR outcomes to inform
resources – people, capital, institutions, infrastructure, into decriminalized, and compliance norms such as EPFO and data-driven policy reforms.
ESIC registration should be made voluntary where not  Streamline Environmental Regulations
applicable to the company.  Formulate a National Judicial AI Policy
Consolidate fragmented environmental laws under a single
Consultative Approach  Address Bottlenecks in NCLT/NCLAT Functioning framework. Use AI-based audits and digital dashboards to Policy should accelerate digital transformation through
AI-assisted case sorting, mandatory e-filing, and real-time
to Policy Making Judicial delays can derail business operations. Steps must be improve transparency and reduce approval timelines. performance analytics across courts.
taken to digitize case processing, fill staffing gaps, and  Implement IBC 2.0 Reforms
implement hybrid hearing models for faster case resolution.
Introduce pre-pack insolvency for large firms, set up
Formation of High-Level Empowered Expert Formation of GST like Councils or Empowered  Reform Related Party Transaction (RPT) Disclosures dedicated benches, and enable cross-border resolution
Committees for key reforms comprising experts Committees for land, labour, power, agriculture, SEBI’s RPT disclosure norms should be recalibrated. mechanisms aligned with UNCITRAL Model Law. This will
with high credibility. These empowered urban, education, fiscal sustainability, subjects Excessive disclosure requirements should be avoided to improve investor confidence and asset recovery timelines.
committees will bring expertise and effective which lie in the state or the concurrent list, to ease compliance while preserving governance standards.  Decriminalise technical business violations through Jan
stakeholder consultation. The fact that the ensure effective coordination between Central Viswas 2.0
recommendations emerge from expert-driven, and State Governments in policy development India must continue to simplify its tax regime to improve
certainty, widen the tax base, and reduce litigation.
consultative processes will enhance the legitimacy and implementation. For example, the A trust-based approach should be followed where
of the proposals and help in building broader Empowered Committee of State Finance procedural lapses such as delayed filings, failure to produce  Expand Presumptive Taxation
consensus around reforms. Ministers on Goods and Service Tax (GST) played documents, or record maintenance issues should carry civil
a key role in building consensus on GST. penalties, not criminal liability. Extend simplified presumptive tax schemes to a wider
range of resident and non-resident sectors. Increase
turnover limits to align with MSME definitions.
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APRIL 2025
APRIL 2025