Assessment of States/UTs based on implementation of Business Reforms Action Plan for the year 2020 declared

What is the News?

The Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs has announced the assessment of States/UTs under the Business Reforms Action Plan(BRAP) 2020.

What is the Business Reforms Action Plan(BRAP)?

Released by: Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade(DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce and Industry since 2014.

Aim: To boost investor confidence, foster business-friendly climate and augment the Ease of Doing Business by introducing an element of healthy competition through a system of assessing states based on their performance in the implementation of the Business Reforms Action Plan.

Parameters: It includes 301 reform points that cover 15 business regulatory areas such as access to Information, single window system, labour, environment, sectoral reforms and other reforms spanning across the lifecycle of a typical business.

– Sectoral reforms have been introduced for the first time in BRAP 2020 wherein 72 reforms were identified across 9 sectors namely: Trade license, Healthcare, Legal metrology, Cinema halls, Hospitality, Fire NOC, Telecom, Movie shooting and Tourism.

Categories: The report categorizes states into 1) Top achievers, 2) Achievers, 3) Aspires, and 4) Emerging business ecosystems as against the earlier practice of announcing ranks.

What are the key rankings of BRAP 2020?

Top Achievers: Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Telangana, Haryana, Karnataka, Punjab and Tamil Nadu.

Achievers: Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh.

Aspires: It includes seven states – Assam, Kerala, Goa, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Kerala, Rajasthan and West Bengal.

Emerging Business Ecosystems: There are 11 states and UTs including Delhi, Puducherry and Tripura in this category.

Observations made by the Finance Minister: The nature of reforms had undergone change since 1991. For instance, unlike the reforms of 1991 which were given to us for implementation, there is no compulsion now. The objective now is to see what will bring out improvement in systems and ensure better lives for us. Hence, an element of nudge has been brought into every layer of the government.

Note: Nudge policies gently steer people towards desirable behaviour even while preserving their liberty to choose.

Source: The post is based on the article “Assessment of States/UTs based on implementation of Business Reforms Action Plan for the year 2020 declared” published in PIB on 30th June 2022