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The National Single Window System (NSWS), a digital platform that aids investors in obtaining government approval for projects, has recently welcomed Jammu & Kashmir as the first Union Territory. Premiers from the University of Tennessee were present when Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha made an official announcement about the launch of the integrated Jammu and Kashmir Single Window Clearance System on Monday. More than 160 industrial services will be integrated this year. Approximately 130 industrial services have been made available on a single-window system. According to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), the ease of doing business (EoDB) in the Union Territory has significantly improved.
Jammu And Kashmir Governor’s Statement
The Kashmir Observer reported the Lt. Governor saying: “J&K Single Window Clearance System is a milestone in the UT Government’s efforts to enable foreign investment in the J&K region. Reduced regulatory compliance constraints promote ease of doing business and ease of life. The National Single Window System has now been implemented in J&K for the first time. J&K’s National Single Window system now allows overseas investors to apply for all of their business licences and permits in one place. That was what he stated.
For investors, the National Single Window System (NSWS)Â
is a digital platform that gives a step-by-step approach to finding and applying for company approvals. Shri Piyush Goyal, the Union Minister for Commerce and Industry,Â
Textiles, and Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, launched the platform in September 2021.
What is the National Single Window System?
With the launch of the national single window system in September 2021, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal hopes to eliminate the paperwork required in establishing new enterprises by providing investors with the ability to identify and secure relevant licences.
According to the government website, this module, known as Know Your Approvals (KYA), is already supported by information from 32 central departments and 14 states. The portal’s official website currently hosts permission requests from 19 different federal agencies and 11 different state governments.
One of the main goals of the portal is to reduce the number of data investors have to submit to many platforms and agencies. As part of this effort, the federal and state governments will be working together to streamline the launching and running. India’s permits and permissions ecosystem has long been criticised for discouraging investment in the country.
The New South Wales Securities and Investments Commission (NSWS) implements six online modules to improve regulatory approval services, including a KYA, common registration form, applicant dashboard, document repository, and communication module.
Why is this important to Jammu and Kashmir?
Integrating J&K’s single-window system with the National Single Window System (NSWS) is part of the central government’s broader goal to open up J&K to investors from outside the union territory.
The removal of Articles 370 and 35A of the Indian Constitution, effectively allowing non-Kashmiris to own land and immovable property in the state, has prompted the government to introduce additional incentives, such as the ‘New Central Sector Scheme for Industrial Development of Jammu and Kashmir’ in February 2021, for which Rs 28,400 crore has been allocated by the federal government.
The UT administration enacted new industrial policies, including new subsidies, exemptions, and loan subvention programmes, in April 2021 to attract additional investment.
Companies from various industries have expressed interest in investing in the state, with JSW Steel, for example, pledging to invest Rs 150 crore in a steel production facility in Lassipora and Apollo Hospitals announcing plans to invest Rs 200 crore in a 250-bed hospital in Jammu. According to other reports, Reliance Industries and the Tata Group have expressed an interest in investing in various areas in the UT, ranging from information technology to agriculture.
MHA’s Explanation On NSWS
As part of the India Industrial Land Bank (IILB), NSWS manages 45 J&K industrial parks. The MHA said it would help investors discover land tracts in J&K. It asserted that NSWS would minimise the need for investors to visit several platforms or offices to get information and clearances from various parties. According to the Indian Express, NSWS now includes over 20 ministries and departments, including the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Environment, Forest & Climate Change, Commerce & Industry, and Health & Family Welfare. The MHA said the NSWS portal can now handle 142 central approvals. The 14 states/UTs with NSWS are Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Maharashtra, Odisha, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, and Uttarakhand.
Conclusion
Investors can use the National Single Window System (NSWS) to find and apply for the regulatory approvals they need for their firm through a digital platform. The Know Your Approvals module supports all 32 central departments and 16 states. Investors may, however, wish to double-check any additional approvals that are needed at their leisure. Approval requests have been submitted to the portal thus far from 21 federal agencies and 14 state governments. The platform was designed to detect approvals based on user input for guidance purposes. More approvals will be added, and pertinent information will be updated regularly.
