RE: Investment14 Mar 2019 11:43
March 2019
Badly hit by demonetisation and GST, Rajasthan’s problems have been compounded by the deluge of cheap Chinese goods and more significantly, a 2017 Supreme Court decision which completely banned gravel- and river-sand mining. This not only rendered thousands of workers jobless, but dealt a huge blow to an already sluggish construction industry.
According to Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) estimates, Rajasthan’s unemployment rate has more than doubled over the last two years, from 6.6 percent in 2016 to 14.9 percent in December 2018. Given this background and with Lok Sabha elections round the corner, the Rajasthan government on February 4 notified Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Facilitation of Establishment and Operation Ordinance, 2019 to boost growth and investment by removing bureaucratic hurdles.
Under the new ordinance, all sorts of approvals and inspections from various departments have been exempted for three years, apart from other legal and administrative difficulties. At the same time, all the provisions of the Government of India, where the state government is empowered to grant relief and exemption, have been extended to MSMEs.
According to the new provisions, entrepreneurs will be able to present “declaration of intent” electronically or physically to the nodal agency, which will issue an acknowledgement certificate that will spare them the trouble of running around government offices. Bureau of Investment Promotion and District Industrial Centres will be the nodal agency for implementation of the ordinance.
All the necessary approvals from the department concerned can be secured only after three years by the enterprises and within six months.
“This ordinance will not only save the time of entrepreneurs, but also allow them to focus on industrial expansion and production,” said Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot in a press release. Besides, it will also create a conducive environment for industrial investment in the state, he said, adding that they will have to work as per the laws.
Rajasthan’s trade and industry have hailed the move, calling it a big leap forward in creating transparent and accountable administration. They say that the state previously had a “single-window” facility, but it was not free from the bureaucratic red tape. That was the main bane for Rajasthan failing to attract investment and in many cases because of delay in getting necessary approvals and clearances, many projects were shelved or failed to take off.
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