Devendra Fadnavis wants business-friendly policies to boost economy

Asserting his willingness to make changes in the Special Economic Zone SEZ policy Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has said the only way to boost the states economy is by easing the business cultureMaharashtras growth rate has plummeted to its lowest level in the past four years he said Industrialists and investors are wary of expanding their business here because they are tired of running around taking the necessary permissions for it There are 76different permissions needed to start a business as of nowMaharashtra CMDevendra FadnavisI have instructed the concerned officials to reduce it to 25 within a week Fadnavis told reporters here last evening He said top industrialists have urged him not to go out of his way to provide leeway for businessmen to conduct their operations Big businessmen only want what is due to them under the law They want to conduct their businesses with minimal technical problems he saidDays are gone when files relating to a particular industry were transferred from one department to the other Now each concerned department will submit its opinion within a time frame The nodal department will take a final call the Chief Minister saidThe policies implemented by the previous CongressNCP government failed to attract investments hence those policies will undergo an overhaul to suit investment growth he saidThis government is very keen on bringing investments in the state only then will the GSDP Gross State Domestic Product increase which will in turn bring efficiency in the taxation system and increase state resources he said We have identified zones of DMIC Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor NagpurAmravati belt and private SEZs near Pune as potential investment destinations Fadnavis saidadding that the first two smart cities in the state will come up in Aurangabad and Raigad districtsThe government is committed towards removing lapses in the RRZ River Regulatory Zone policy as well he said Referring to hurdles in the change in use of land procedures Fadnavis said MIDC Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation will be empowered to issue requisite permissions which will bring down the time required to change the use of a landChange in use of land is a lengthy procedure It takes minimum eight months to convert a farm land into an industrial land The MIDC needs to be empowered and Development Control rules need to be put in place This would enable the Urban Development department to take care of the process and time required to issue permissions will come down to 15 days he said