The Telegraph

“These results from the Doing Business 2019 report are great news for South Asia and underscore the need to persist with challenging reforms that can provide more opportunities for people to lift themselves out of poverty and spread prosperity more widely,” said Hartwig Schafer, vice-president for the South Asia Region of the World Bank.

Chandrajit Banerjee, director-general of the CII, said: “65 ranks improvement in four years is a stupendous achievement… Businesses have been experiencing fast improving regulatory compliances, resulting in significant savings of time and costs. A series of facilitative reforms, aimed at rationalisation and digitisation of regulatory processes and procedures, have started yielding results at the ground level.”

The reforms in India included streamlining the process of obtaining a building permit and improved building quality controls. The reforms apply to both Delhi and Mumbai.

Starting a business was made easier through consolidation of multiple application forms and introduction of the GST, while getting electricity was made faster and cheaper. Other reforms in India included strengthening access to credit as well as making it easier and faster to pay taxes and trade across borders.

India jumped 23 spots to rank 77 among 190 nations in the World Bank’s ranking of ease of doing business in 2019, which was released on Wednesday.

Finance minister Arun Jaitley said India could get into the top 50 if it improved on three parameters — time taken to register real estate, starting business and enforcement of contracts.

In its annual report “Doing Business: Training for Reform”, the World Bank said China and India — two of the world’s largest economies —were among the 10 top improved countries.

The World Bank ranking is based on its study of the system in the two cities of Mumbai and New Delhi.

The ease of doing business is an index created by the World Bank to measure regulations directly affecting businesses and overall environment. India was ranked 142 among 190 nations when the Modi government came to power in 2014. It rose to 100 in the last ranking from 131 rank for 2017.

New Zealand tops the list of 190 countries in ease of doing business, followed by Singapore, Denmark, and Hong Kong. The United States is placed eighth and China comes in at 46. Neighbouring Pakistan is placed at 136.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a tweet said: “Delighted at yet another rise in India’s ‘Ease of Doing Business’ rank. We are unwavering in our commitment towards economic reforms, which will ensure an environment that fosters industry, investment and opportunities.”

The BJP-led government, since coming to power, has reduced red-tape and corruption, and its reforms have ensured India jumps ranks from 142 to 77, Jaitley said.

Enforcement of contracts, taxation and insolvency laws have improved and should get reflected in future rankings, he said.

The rankings are based on 10 parameters — starting a business, dealing with construction permits, getting electricity, registering property, getting credit, protecting minority investors, paying taxes, trading across borders, enforcing contracts and resolving insolvency.

Jaitley said soon after coming to power in 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had set a target of breaking into the top 50 and it seems possible if the time taken to start a business, registering property, enforcing contracts and paying taxes are improved.