Govt plans e-clearance system for projects

Aiming to give quick approval by ending bureaucratic delays, the National Democratic Alliance government has decided to digitise all applications for clearances relating to any projects including investment proposals in different sectors and forest and environment approvals. 

The Prime Minister Office has set a March 31, 2015, deadline for all the ministries to implement the system in their departments. The Department of Industrial Promotion and Policy, which already launched a portal, will advance its website to enable both domestic and foreign investors to file applications seeking online approvals for their investment proposals. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to launch an advanced e-biz portal next year. 

Though forest clearances for industry, infrastructure projects have gone online, approval for exploration of mines will be launched on November 1. By end of this fiscal, coal related project clearances will be made web based clearances, sources in the Cabinet Secretariat told Deccan Herald. 

The Cabinet Secretariat, which is monitoring the progress of digitalisation and online clearances scheme, also ensures that any persons or corporate house wanted to seek any approval have to simply upload their proposals in e-biz portal. Applicants can also track the progress of their applications through the website instead of visiting the government offices, sources said. 

With the Centre asking state governments to set up similar kind of web-based clearances system, the Centre’s portal will be linked to them. 

The Centre will co-ordinate with states to get early clearances of projects instead of investors keep meeting the state government officials.