Ease of Doing Business is an index published by the World Bank and it is an aggregate figure that includes different parameters which define the Ease of Doing Business. The ranking on the index is based on the average of 10 sub-indices. The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) of the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry is in partnership with the World Bank Group. Earlier this year it released the Business Reform Action Plan (BRAP) under Ease of Doing Business initiative for the current financial year. The Action Plan was offered for implementation by all the States and Union Territories including Jammu and Kashmir with a total of 372 recommendations. In the case of J&K State, the report shows that Ease of Doing Business ranking has improved significantly during the current performance on the part of several key departments.
J&K has successfully implemented 270 recommendations and uploaded 262 replies out of total 372 recommendations. As per the dynamic ranking by the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), J&K stands at 22nd rank with 12.71 points as on date. There are fair chances that by the end of the year, there will be further improvement in performance and the ranking of the State may also increase accordingly. While most of the departments have shown improvement in performance yet at least departments namely PDD, Revenue and Forest Departments have not shown the desired results. In particular, the PDD has not performed according to expectations and owing to its slackness it has adversely impacted the growth of industries which could have been a good avenue for employment of the youth in the state, which otherwise has immense potential to check growing unemployment among the youth.
We are very happy that there is significant change for betterment in the business sector and that the Government is responding to the reform points by implementing these so that the Ease of Doing Business scheme becomes responsive in the State. Consequently, it is also important that the departments that have not shown desirable improvement have to gear up and come in line with other departments to ensure that their contribution to the industrial development of the State does not lag behind.
The most essential question before the Government is of the unemployment among the educated youth. The belief is that improvement in industrialization sector is bound to provide opening for employment of the youth in the State. All these efforts are meant to improve industrial culture and atmosphere in the State so that bright opportunities of employment are available. The reforms that have been suggested and have also been implemented, though some remain still in the pipeline, are all in the direction of improving job opportunities in industrial sector and this, we think, is the right way of handling the problem of unemployment.
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