JAMMU: Chief Secretary, Atal Dulloo, today chaired a high-level meeting of all the administrative heads of the concerned departments held to review progress on the adoption of reforms recommended under the Business Reform Action Plan (BRAP) 2024, aimed at enhancing the Ease of Doing Business (EODB) in J&K.
During the meeting, the Chief Secretary had a department-wise appraisal of the reforms that have been implemented and those still pending. He thoroughly examined the status of each reform to be implemented and sought explanations for those yet to be implemented.
Emphasizing the significance of these reforms, the Chief Secretary instructed all the concerned departments to ensure full compliance without exception. He highlighted that each reform plays a crucial role in streamlining business processes and fostering a business-friendly environment in J&K. He directed all the departments to expedite implementation efforts and meet the set deadline of March 15, 2024.
The Chief Secretary further advised the Industries & Commerce Department, the nodal department for BRAP implementation, to extend necessary assistance to all departments for seamless execution of all the reforms. He also mandated the timely uploading of evidential documentation of all these reforms on the BARP national portal by the March 15 deadline.
About J&K’s progress on implementing these business reforms, Commissioner Secretary, Industries & Commerce, Vikramjit Singh, provided insights into the evolution of BRAP, initiated by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) in 2014-15 across all States/UTs. He stated that six editions of the program have been successfully concluded, leading to the implementation of hundreds of reforms nationwide.
Reflecting on BRAP-2022, he noted that 25 departments participated in J&K’s implementation, making it the first UT to achieve a 97% implementation score. Additionally, over 180 services were made available online through a single-window system, positioning J&K as the first UT to integrate with the National Single Window System (NSWS).
As far as the progress on BRAP-2024 and Reducing Compliance Burden (RCB) is concerned, it was revealed that DPIIT initially recommended 287 reform points for State/UT implementation. With the addition of BRAP+ and RCB+, the total number of required reforms has increased to 434, with a revised compliance deadline set for March 15, 2025.
Under BRAP-2024, J&K has already implemented 410 reform measures, with the remaining in progress, many requiring amendments to existing laws and regulations.
Regarding Regulatory Compliance Burden (RCB) reduction, 92 measures were recommended, covering 23 Acts across 12 departments. Till date, 85 reforms have been successfully uploaded, with only 7 pending for completion within the stipulated timeline of March 2025, as was revealed in the meeting.
