Digital Blueprint for Ease of Doing Business

Why in News?

India has reshaped its economy by making digital transformation a key driver of growth; introduced wide-ranging reforms to improve Ease of Doing Business (EoDB).

What are the measures for Business Registration & Regulatory Framework?

• MCA21 – It is an AI-driven platform used for end-to-end registry &  incorporation of Companies & LLPs since 2006 to enhances transparency and Ease of Doing Business (EoDB).
• MCA21 Version 3 Features – Like e-Scrutiny, e-adjudication and e-consultation, Compliance Management System and MCA Lab.
• Application Programming Interface (API) – It acts as a bridge that enables tasks like searching, retrieving, submitting, updating, or triggering actions.
• Usage – 3.84 crore filings (2021–2025).
• ISO 27001 – International framework for managing information security risks; shows robust data protection practices.
• Udyam Registration Portal – It offers a free, paperless, and self-declaration-based system for MSMEs & integrating with CBDT (Central Board of Direct Taxes) and GSTN (GST Network) databases.
• Impact (12 Feb 2026) – 7.71 crore registrations & 33.97 crore jobs supported.
• Business Reforms Action Plan (BRAP) & District Reforms  – Designed to compare regulatory requirements across States and encourage them to reduce compliance burdens and create a more business-friendly environment.
• Started in – 2015, promotes transparency, simplify regulatory procedures, and enhance service delivery.
• Till date, 7 editions of BRAP have been completed, and the eighth edition, BRAP 2026, was formally rolled out on 11 November 2025.
• Progress – 7^th editions completed & 8^th edition (BRAP 2026) launched on 11 Nov 2025.
• District BRAP – Launched to strengthen EoDB at the District Level.
• Achievements of States
  • Kerala – Aspirer (2022), Fast Mover (2024)
  • Uttar Pradesh – Aspirer (2022 & 2024)
  • Tamil Nadu – Aspirer (2022 & 2024)
• SPICe+ Form – It is an integrated web form which saves many procedures, time and cost for starting a business in India.
• Offers 11 services by 3 Central Govt Ministries & Departments and 3 State Governments (Maharashtra, Karnataka, West Bengal) and NCT – Delhi.
• It has consolidated 10 essential procedures – including incorporation; DIN Allotment; issue of PAN, TAN, ESIC Registration, EPFO Registration; etc.

What are the measures for Integrated Clearance & Environmental Approvals?

• National Single Window System (NSWS) – A digital platform which guides in identifying and applying for approvals according to the business requirements.
• Benefits – Streamlined approvals, reduced timelines, secure document repository, fast query management.
• Integration – Covers 32 Central Departments + 32 State Govts → access to 698 central & 7,435 state approvals.
• PARIVESH 3.0 – Pro-Active and Responsive facilitation by Interactive, Virtuous, and Environmental Single Window Hub
• Purpose – For environmental clearances and post-approval compliance monitoring.
• Integration – Baseline data, afforestation land banks, inter ministerial dashboards, AI enabled support, enhances transparency, predictability, efficiency.
• e-Gram SWARAJ portal – It provides a single window with the complete Gram Panchayat Profile (Sarpanch/Secretary, demography, finances, other assets, etc).
• It serve as a unified reporting and tracking platform, strengthens decentralised planning & improves fund utilisation.

What are the measures related to Taxation, Customs & Trade Facilitation?

• GST Network (GSTN) – Provides a synchronised interface for over a crore of taxpayers, ensuring effortless B2B electronic invoicing which fosters a transparent and efficient fiscal framework..
• Processing of over Rs.102.91 lakh crore payments (as of January 2026). 
• E-Way Bill – It replaces multiple state-level permits with a single, electronic document for the movement of goods.
• It has facilitated the removal of static border check posts to reduce transport time and improved tax compliance.
• Growth – 21% year-on-year increase during April- December 2025.
• ICEGATE (Indian Customs Electronic Gateway) – It serves as a centralized hub for all electronic interactions between Indian customs and the trading community.
• Services – Offers a range of services including e-filing, online amendment submission, online duty payment, query resolution, and IGST refunds.
• Benefit – Enhances the ease of doing business by streamlining customs procedures and promoting transparency in cross-border trade.
• eCoO (Enhanced Certificate of Origin) 2.0 – It is a digital upgrade by simplifying the certification process for exporters.
• Features used – Multi-user access under a single IEC, Aadhaar-based e-signing, and dashboard for FTA.
• Benefit – Flexible, transparent online applications for Certificates of Origin.
• TReDS (Trade Receivables Discounting System) – It is an electronic platform that facilitates financing / discounting of trade receivables of MSMEs through multiple financiers.
• These receivables can be due from corporates and other buyers, including Government Departments and PSUs.
• Trade Connect e-Platform – It provides comprehensive international trade information and services to all exporters, including MSMEs.
• Features – It enables directs connections between global buyers via missions abroad, single govt engagement channel, digital learning & trade intelligence.
• Impact (12 Feb 2026) – Currently, it has over 19.25 lakhs registered users with more than 28 lakhs certificate of origin issued.

What are the key measures for Logistics & Market Access?

• PM GatiShakti National Master Plan – Launched in October 2021, for integrated infrastructure planning and multimodal connectivity.
• Unified platform – 57 Central Ministries + all States/UTs, with 1,700+ data layers.
• Adoption – 27 States notified logistics policies; 28 Aspirational Districts using District Master Plan Module (to expand to all 112).
• Impact (Feb 2026) – NPG evaluated 352 projects worth Rs.16.10 lakh crore; 201 sanctioned, 167 under implementation.
• Benefits – Reduces delays, avoids duplication, strengthens freight movement, improves EoDB.
• National Logistics Portal (Marine) – It is a maritime single-window platform for exporters, importers, service providers.
• Features – Aligns with global standards, integrating G2G, G2B, and B2B models, real-time tracking of vessel terminal gate, and container freight station (CFS) gate transactions.
• Logistics Data Bank (LDB 2.0) – This platform provides real time tracking & multimodal visibility (road, rail, sea) through integration with Unified Logistics Interface Platform (ULIP) APIs.
• Features – Introduces high-seas container tracking, live container heatmap to identify bottlenecks, to fosters a transparent, data-driven ecosystem that reduces costs and improves supply chain management.
• GeM (Government e-Marketplace) – A digital procurement system connecting sellers and service providers across the country, including women entrepreneurs, startups, micro and small enterprises (MSEs), artisans, self-help groups (SHGs) and Divyangjans.
• ONDC (Open Network for Digital Commerce) – It aimed at promoting open digital networks for goods and services over digital or electronic networks.
• It envisions creating a level playing field for sellers, buyers, and service providers across India, particularly small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
• The sellers and service providers are spread across 616+ cities expanding the geographical coverage of the ONDC network.

What are the key initiatives in Digital Public Infrastructure to improve ease of doing business?

• Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) – It enables secure, co-ordinated interactions between people, businesses and governments.
• It reduces operational friction and enhances the Ease of Doing Business through instant, secure, and transparent digital interactions.
• UPI (Unified Payments Interface) – It is a real-time payment system that enables instant money transfers between bank accounts through a mobile application.
• It brings multiple bank accounts into a single app and supports various features such as fund transfers, merchant payments, and peer-peer payment requests and provides QR code convenience. 
• Scale – It connects 691 banks on a single platform allowing people to make payments easily.
• In January 2026 alone it handled 21.70 billion transaction
• Impact (Jan 2026) – 21.70 billion transactions amounting to Rs. 28.33 lakh crore. 

• International Recognition of UPI
• IMF (June 2025) – Recognized UPI as world’s largest retail fast‑payment system (FPS).
• ACI Worldwide (2024) – 49% share of global real‑time transactions volume.
• It surpassed Visa in daily transactions.
• Live in 8 countries (UAE, Singapore, Bhutan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, France, Mauritius, Qatar) positioning India as a global leader in digital payments.
• cKYC (Central Know Your Customer) Registry – It is a centralized repository of KYC records of customers in the financial sector with uniform KYC norms and inter-usability of the KYC records across the sector.
• Objective – Reduce repeated submission & verification of KYC documents when creating new financial relationships.
• Entity Locker – It is a secure, cloud-based platform for storing, sharing, and verifying digital documents and certificates.
• This platform ensures safe, efficient, and streamlined document management for businesses and institutions.
• API Setu – It is a unified digital platform for discovering, accessing, and integrating APIs.
• Users – Govt departments, private organizations, startups, developers to discover, access, and integrate APIs with ease.
• It enables swift, transparent, safe and reliable information sharing across applications and promote innovation.

What lies ahead?

• India’s digital reforms have fundamentally transformed the business environment, making approvals, registration, and trade processes seamless and efficient.
• Robust digital infrastructure is fostering innovation, reducing costs, and enabling smooth interactions between businesses, citizens, and government.
• These initiatives collectively position India as a secure, efficient, and highly attractive destination for enterprise setup and growth.

Reference

PIB | The Digital Blueprint for Ease of Doing Business

GDP Revision with 2022–23 Base Year - Key Changes and Implications for India’s Economy

Why in News?

Recently the GDP revision introduced 2022-23 as the base year replacing 2011-12 series.

What is GDP revision?

• GDP – Gross Domestic Product (GDP) represents the total value of all final goods and services produced within a country during a given year, net of material inputs.
• It is the most widely used indicator to measure the size and performance of an economy.
• It also referred to as Gross Value Added (GVA), are prepared using extensive data on production, prices, and other economic indicators.
• These estimates follow the global framework of the United Nations System of National Accounts (UNSNA).
• Global practice – To ensure accuracy and reflect structural changes in the economy, countries periodically revise the National Accounts Statistics (NAS) base year.
• Indian scenario – The National Statistical Office (NSO) undertakes this exercise roughly every 5–10 years.
• The latest revision introduces 2022–23 as the new base year, replacing the earlier 2011–12 series.

Why base year revision is necessary?

• Capturing economic change – Rebasing the GDP series helps capture changes in production patterns, prices, and the structure of the economy.
• Ensuring accuracy – As economies grow, the relative importance of sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing, and services evolves.
• Updating the base year ensures that the GDP estimates accurately reflect these shifts.
• Better data – Such revisions also incorporate improved datasets, better statistical techniques, and updated classifications.
• Consequently, they affect GDP estimates as well as related macroeconomic aggregates such as national savings, investment, and consumption.

What are the background & concerns with the 2011–12 GDP series?

• Higher manufacturing growth estimates – The revised data showed higher growth rates compared with earlier series.
• Structural shifts – The size of the non-financial private corporate sector (PCS) appeared much larger than previously estimated.
• Data credibility issues – Many analysts argued that GDP growth during the past decade may have been overestimated.
• These concerns were further highlighted when the International Monetary Fund (IMF) assigned India a ‘C’ grade for the quality of its National Accounts Statistics in a review of member countries’ statistical systems.
• Given this context, the new GDP series with 2022–23 as the base year attracted considerable attention.

What are the key changes in the new GDP series?

• Reduction in Absolute GDP Size – The revised estimates indicate that India’s GDP at current prices is about 3–4% smaller compared with the estimates based on the 2011–12 series.
• Although the size of GDP has been revised downward, annual growth rates remain broadly similar, with differences generally within ±1 percentage point.
• Changes in Sectoral Composition – The new series shows modest shifts in the production structure:
  • Agriculture and allied sectors – Share in GDP has increased slightly.
  • Industry (secondary sector) – Its share has also increased.
  • Services sector – The share has declined somewhat compared to the earlier series.
• Within the industrial sector, manufacturing share has increased marginally from 14.3% to 14.7% of GDP.
• However, the absolute size of manufacturing has declined by about 1.5–1.6% relative to the earlier estimates.
• This is significant because manufacturing estimates were a major point of debate in the previous GDP revision.
• Institutional Sector Changes – The revision also alters the contribution of different institutional sectors:
• Non-financial private corporate sector (PCS):
  • Declined from 35.4% to 33.9% of GDP in 2022–23.
  • The difference widens to 3.4 percentage points in 2023–24.
• Household or informal sector:
  • Its share has increased marginally.
  • The rise is mainly attributed to agriculture-related activities.
• These changes partially address earlier criticisms regarding the overstated role of the corporate sector in GDP.
• Interpreting the Changes – In principle, rebasing should not significantly alter the absolute GDP size at current prices, because the underlying economy remains unchanged.
• If anything, revisions usually increase GDP size, as improved data capture previously unrecorded activities.
• Therefore, the reduction in GDP size in the new series appears surprising.
• However, considering the widespread view that earlier estimates overstated growth, this downward revision may represent a correction of past overestimation.

What are the economic and policy implications?

• Reassessment of Economic Performance – A smaller GDP base may lead to a reassessment of India’s growth trajectory over the past decade.
• Impact on Economic Targets – The correction could delay the target of achieving a $5 trillion economy, first articulated by Narendra Modi in 2019.
• Policy Formulation – Sectoral shifts, particularly the modest rise in agriculture and industry shares, may influence industrial and agricultural policies.
• Statistical Credibility – The revision is also important for restoring confidence in India’s statistical system, especially after concerns raised by the IMF.
• Outstanding Concerns – Despite the improvements, several issues remain:
  • It is unclear whether all methodological problems in the 2011–12 series have been resolved.
  • Changes in growth rates could result from new datasets, revised ratios, or methodological adjustments, rather than actual economic changes.
  • Detailed methodological documentation from the NSO is required for a comprehensive evaluation.

What lies ahead?

• The revision of India’s GDP series with 2022–23 as the base year marks an important step in updating the country’s national accounts.
• While the downward revision in GDP size may correct earlier overestimations and partially address concerns about data reliability, a full assessment of the new series requires greater transparency in methodology.
• Strengthening statistical credibility will be essential for informed policymaking and for maintaining confidence among domestic and international stakeholders.

Reference

The Hindu| Revision of GDP