The Indian government has fast-tracked efforts to reduce export barriers and improve Ease of Doing Business to boost manufacturing and revive exports.

India’s exports slipped into the negative list in October 2014 y/y for the first time since April 2014. Exports have declined due to several factors such as dipping global commodity prices, strengthening rupee against the USD, and a slowdown in Europe. Experts say that the uncertainty over the release of the new Foreign Trade Policy isn’t helping exporters and the government must take immediate steps to address the decline in exports.

Earlier this month, M Rafeeque Ahmed, President, FIEO, had said that the new Foreign Trade Policy (FTP 2014-19) must be announced soon or the previous one allowed to continue until March 31, 2015, to remove ambiguity among exporters. The new FTP should focus on Marketing, Branding, e-Commerce, Services exports, Project exports, High technology exports and improve Ease of Doing Business, the FIEO chief had said.

India is placed at the 142nd position among the 189 countries in the World Bank’s ease of 2015 Doing Business rankings. In the “Trading Across Borders” sub-index, India has slipped four points to the 126th rank this year.

In response, the Commerce Ministry has announced a slew of measures in the last few days to address the situation. It said that the government will reduce the number of documents required for exports from the current nine to three by April 2015. This will put India on par with other nations such as Singapore which top the list in both “Ease of Doing Business” and “Trading Across Borders” sub-index.

The government has also assured that the Goods and Service Tax (GST) Bill will be introduced in the ongoing Winter Session of the Parliament. GST is expected to play a major role in making Indian companies and goods competitive in the global markets and encourage investments in the manufacturing sector.

The government is also planning a single window clearance system for businessmen to set up projects in India and make use of technology to help get online approvals from various ministries. According to official sources, eight states have already implemented online registration of MSME companies, and talks are on with other states as well.

Approvals regarding labour procedures are expected to become easier with the launch of a labour portal which will help businesses get clearance of 16 labour laws at one place. Six states have also joined portal, according to official sources.

source:- thedollarbusiness.com