Chandrababu Naidu Advocates for Streamlined Industrial Procedures in Andhra Pradesh
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Key Takeaways
Amaravati, April 13 (NationPress) The Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, N. Chandrababu Naidu, has instructed state officials to streamline policies and procedures to enable the rapid establishment of industries within the state.
He highlighted the necessity of removing redundant laws and regulations to foster a more business-friendly climate.
A delegation from the central government, led by Ministry of Steel Secretary Sandeep Poundrik, visited the Secretariat to discuss the Union government's Deregulation Phase-2 initiative with the Chief Minister and state officials.
The discussions centered on expediting industrial approvals, simplifying processes, and alleviating regulatory burdens.
State officials presented an overview of the reforms already enacted along with future action strategies.
According to an official statement, Chief Minister Naidu assessed the progress of Phase-1 and the current status of Phase-2.
It was reported that 23 priority items across seven departments have been finalized under Phase-1.
As for Phase-2, 28 priority areas have been recognized.
"Out of 47 recommendations, 18 have been executed, aiming for completion of all by May 31," he noted.
The Chief Minister emphasized the need to simplify the approval process and significantly enhance efficiency.
Chandrababu Naidu urged the removal of outdated laws, some dating back to colonial times.
He tasked officials with reducing over 800 existing compliance requirements to below 100 and cutting the number of necessary licenses for approvals to a single digit.
While advocating for these changes, he stressed that public safety and environmental protection should remain a priority.
His recommendations include promoting third-party inspections to minimize unnecessary complications, abolishing duplicate licensing systems, offering lifetime validity for business registrations, and implementing simplified, state-specific fire safety regulations instead of adhering to the National Building Code.
He also insisted that the entire approval process must be transitioned to an online platform.
Following the implementation of Phase-2, the goal is to reduce the time required to establish industries by at least 40%.
The Chief Minister instructed officials to introduce ordinances as needed to enact Phase-2 reforms.
Currently, businesses require approximately 82 different approvals.
His directive is to decrease this number to 57 gradually.
Similarly, approvals for building plans and occupancy certificates are to be lowered from 30 to 18.
Chandrababu Naidu also emphasized the need for faster land allocation within industrial parks and clusters, the establishment of a single nodal agency for all approvals, and simplifications in sectors such as fire safety, environment, power, tourism, education, and health.
He noted that existing platforms such as Mee Seva, Single Desk Portal, and WhatsApp Governance (Mana Mitra) will be utilized to provide seamless services to citizens and businesses.
Ministry of Steel Secretary Sandeep Poundrik praised the state's proactive reforms, stating that Andhra Pradesh is ahead of central recommendations in terms of deregulation.
He expressed confidence that the state will effectively implement Phase-2 within the designated timeline.