TN to enact Public Service Delivery Guarantee Act

Chennai:

Tamil Nadu may have to enact a legislation to guarantee time bound delivery of services rendered by the Government to industries and businesses in order to comply with Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion’s (DIPP) Business Reforms Action Plan 2017.

The reforms have been mandated by DIPP under Business Reform Action Plan for States and Union Territories 2017. It is learnt that top officials from the state also participated in a meeting to discuss the mechanism to implement the action plan.

Sources said that the state government was keen to pass a Government Order to mandate time-bound delivery of services to industries this month and enact a legislation by September 2017 subject to clearance from relevant authorities.

However, DIPP has informed the state that a single window policy backed by a Government Order alone will not suffice for compliance and wanted a legislation by way of an Act and if there is no time for passing an Act through the assembly, then the government can pass a ordinance.

Sources said that government is looking into the DIPP suggestion and a decision will be arrived soon.

The proposed act also provides mechanism for punishing the errant public servant who is deficient in providing the service stipulated under the statute.

Meanwhile, DIPP has come out with a Guide for implementing the Business Reforms Action Plan.

This guide is intended to strategically discuss objective and end result envisioned in each of the revised 406 action points identified in the Business  Reform Action Plan, that was released last month.

Under the action plan, states have been asked to carry out the approval of plan and permission to  construct or extend or take into use any building as a factory under the Factories Act, 1948, through online process.

“The application has to be made mandatorily online, through a portal where in there will be transparency with no physical touch-points in the application  process,” DIPP has stated.

Under the system, entrepreneurs have to use digital signature certificates to submit their documents through the online system.

Single Window Approal system for Industries:

--- Entrepreneurs should be able to fill out and submit the application form online;

-- The user can pay all associated fees online;

--- Once submitted, the applications are processed and approved by each licensing agency online, and not through a manual or hard copy process;

-- The user can track the status of his applications online using the portal; and

--Once approved, the user can obtain the approval or registration certificate online through the

portal