Ease of doing biz ranking: Gujarat asks clarification

Gujarat has questioned the methodology of DIPP-World Bank ranking of states in terms of ease of doing business, saying it will seek clarification from the department on the issue, a top state government official on Wednesday said.

Gujarat slipped two positions to rank fifth in the ease of doing business ranking among all the states and Union Territories. It was prepared by the World Bank and the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP).

"We are dismayed by the rankings and the way they have done the calculations. We would seek clarification from the DIPP on these things," the Gujarat government official said.

The official pointed out that despite having a higher feedback score of 83.64 per cent as compared to Haryana (82.9 per cent) and same reform evidence score (99.73 per cent), Gujarat was placed two notches lower.

The ranking is based on a combined score consisting of reform evidence score that is based on evidence uploaded by states/UTs and feedback score that is based on response garnered from actual users of services provided to businesses.

Gujarat topped the chart in 2015 but slipped to the third spot in 2016 and fifth in 2017 rankings.

Gujarat is also the home state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Similarly, Madhya Pradesh was placed below Chhattisgarh despite having a high feedback score of 79.73 per cent. These states ranked at seventh and sixth respectively.

Andhra Pradesh continues to be the best state to do business.

According to the latest Business Reform Action Plan (BRAP) index, Telangana and Haryana are placed at second and third positions, respectively.

CII president Rakesh Bharti Mittal said that improvement in ranking is particularly encouraging as it is important to create a beneficial investment ecosystem in all states for ensuring equitable growth.