‘Govt to make India biz-friendly, ease custom rules, give time-bound okays’

Signs of an economic rebound are already visible. The government will follow a strong reform agenda to revive investor confidence and bring a sagging economy back on track, finance secretary Arvind Mayaram tells HT in an interview. Excerpts. World Bank chief Jim Yong Kim has said that in case the Gujarat model is adopted by the whole country, India’s position in the Ease of Doing Business survey can improve by at least 50 notches. What immediate steps would the government take to address the issue? The government will take all necessary steps to improve the business climate of the country to help investors — both domestic and foreign — to get on the high-growth path, boost investments and remove existing hurdles. One of the key areas is custom clearance and it needs to be implemented 24/7. Required approvals must be timebound. But let me tell you that this is not to please or satisfy the World Bank or to get a better ranking in the Ease of Doing Business survey. The survey is not flawless and that has been accepted even by the World Bank chief himself. We should not worry too much about this. Would you now reach out to global rating agencies and seek a review of their outlook towards India? We don’t go to rating agencies and ask them to review their outlook. India is a large economy and the economic situation is improving dramatically. We only highlight the situation. I must also underline the fact that too much of importance on these issues is uncalled for.

Things should be seen in a particular context and it is not as if they (rating agencies) haven’t made mistakes in the past in assessing situations. Yes, it is important to us but we also need to put things in perspective. The direction in the Budget was clear and there is a strong reform agenda. What are the next steps required for the proposed Brics bank? We’ll go to Parliament to ratify it with the New Development Bank Act. Now the other Brics nations would be required to do the same, after which a board would be set up and they would outline the qualifications required for the bank president. Work is progressing and we are happy that this is moving towards a reality. When can we expect the restrictions on gold imports to be eased? We feel the ratio between export and import, which is the 80:20 norm, must be maintained cur- rently, which will largely help in self financing the foreign exchange required for gold. The steps that have been put in place are not a reflection of any kneejerk reaction. And gold exporters are very happy with this norm. Are we hopeful of exceeding the disinvestment target set for the current financial year? The general belief is that we will be able to do so and considering the manner in which the markets are moving, we may be able to fetch a higher sum from the disinvestment exercise.