Karnataka promises all-in-one platform for industries

Facing stiff competition from its neighbours, Karnataka wants to remodel its single-window system for industrial approvals with several new, investor-friendly features as part of a larger ease-of-doing-business reforms initiative over the next five years.

The new ‘integrated digital single-window system’ will be an upgraded version of the current e-Udyami and act as the single “touchpoint to facilitate the required approvals”, according to the new industrial policy 2020-25.

The end-to-end integrated digital system will cover investor facilitation, integration with line departments, monitoring and grievance redressal. It will offer a common application form, online approval based on investors’ profile among other things.

Industrial projects need clearances from at least 15 government departments. But the existing single-window system allows investors to apply for a new project and seek approvals from various departments, separately. This will be fixed by a common application form (CAF) which investors will fill out to get multiple clearances. However, this idea has been in the works for several years now.

“The CAF has been prepared by our team and it requires some legal vetting. It should be done in the next one month or so,” Commerce & Industries principal secretary Gaurav Gupta told DH. “In all, the CAF will be part of the single, integrated portal that will be entirely in the online form, which should have legal sanctity,” he said.

To make the life of investors easy, the government is working on a DigiLocker for each applicant that will serve as a repository of documents required for approvals. According to the new policy document, this system will allow the investor to upload documents only once in a life cycle, hence avoiding uploading the same documents repeatedly.

Recently, the government decided to exempt manufacturing industries or enterprises from seeking various licences and permits for three years.

The government has also promised a slew of regulatory and procedural reforms that include auto-renewal of trade licences and uniform guidelines for fixation of property tax, development cess, other levies in industrial areas.

Between 2014 and 2019, Karnataka attracted investments worth Rs 3.73 lakh crore. The new policy targets Rs 5 lakh crore, and the government hopes that the recent land reforms will help achieve growth.

Investors have been promised clearance within seven working days or eight weeks for agricultural land they purchase directly from farmers. Also, the time required for the Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB) to allot land will be reduced further from 45 days, the policy says.