Modi Govt. Goes Full Throttle On Reforms; Massive Changes In Construction, Industries & Corporate Sector Soon; GST Bill By April, 2016

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) reforms announced by Modi Government, just before Diwali, were only a trailer. As per reports coming in, the Government is going all out to bring in massive reforms in various sectors including construction, industrialization and corporate.

And once again, the Govt. has committed to the April, 2016 deadline for implementing the much awaited Goods and Services Bill (GST), which can bring in much relief for the entrepreneurs and small businessmen.

A senior Govt. official shared with ET: “This (FDI liberalization) was not a one-off measure.. There are more steps in the pipeline… Work is on in many areas.”

Some of the future plans, which can bring cheers to the business community in India:

FDI: Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP) has proposed to interlink industrial codes with FDI policy; which will simplify the regulations and rules for foreign companies which are looking at investing in India

CONSTRUCTION: Building multi-storey buildings in India is an adventure in itself, with a long list of formalities and approvals. Govt. is looking to create a single-window clearance for building multi-storey buildings, which can usher in a new wave of construction boom.

GOODS & SERVICE TAX: Govt. is committed to the April, 2016 deadline for implementing GST across the nation. In May this year, Lok Sabha passed this historical bill, which can boost our GDP by 2%.

CORPORATE LAWS: Among other steps, a new Bankruptcy Law will be introduced, which will make buying and selling of corporations easier and smoother. This is seen as a decisive step towards boosting entrepreneurship in the country.

APPROVALS & CLEARANCES : Besides construction industry, Govt. is also looking at simplifying the maze of permits and approvals for various sectors. Environmental clearances, for instance, takes much time and sometimes bribe to get passed. The future reforms will work on these long pending issues, and make it easy to start a business in India. We had earlier reported how India has improved 12 spots in World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business ranking. We need to further improve on this list.

PM Modi Brought In £13.7 Billion From UK

Between November 12 to 14, PM Modi visited UK and met with several investors and Govt. officials to attract investment into India. These three days of meetings produced an investment of £13.7 billion, in commercial deals.

Some of the major announcements were:

• UK listed OPG Power Ventures plc will invest £3.4 billion, which will create 4200 MW of new power capacity in India
• King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and Indo UK Healthcare will open an healthcare hub in Chandigarh, thereby creating jobs for 2500 nurses and 500 doctors
• Madame Tussauds’ will open in India, thereby bringing in £50 million worth of investments in the next 10 years; along with a global identity and branding
• Solar PV generator from UK will invest £2 billion in India, to generate 3 Gigawatt of Solar power infrastructure by 2020
• UK’s Kloudpad Mobility Research Ltd has announced a £100 million under ‘Make in India’ to manufacture smartwatches, smartphones and gadgets in South India. This will generate 2500 fresh jobs in the country.
• Vodafone announced fresh investments of £1.3 billion in India
• Insurance companies: Standard Life, Bupa and Aviva will pour in £238 million as FDI for further expansion of their business
• HSBC Bank will launch a special program called ‘Skills for Life’; which will train and empower 75,000 disadvantaged young men and women across the nation

Here is the complete list of 27 deals which were announced from UK.

The only way a Govt. can win the hearts of people is by implementing such smashing, inspiring and development-oriented plans. We hope that the momentum is continued.

We will keep you updated as more details about Govt. reforms come in.

[Image: Shutterstock.com]