The World Bank ranking for the year 2018 on ease of doing business in respect of building construction permit has been released which has brought a sense of satisfaction and pleasure in the municipal corporations: South Delhi Municipal Corporation
New Delhi: The municipal corporations in Delhi have shown a jump in ranking on the ease of doing business in respect to building construction permits, assessed by the World Bank, finishing at the 52nd position this year, officials said Thursday.
The South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) which is the nodal agency for all the three municipal corporations — NDMC, SDMC and EDMC — said the previous rank was 181.
"The World Bank ranking for the year 2018 on ease of doing business in respect of building construction permit has been released which has brought a sense of satisfaction and pleasure in the municipal corporations," the SDMC said in a statement.
The civic bodies have earned a better ranking compared to last year and shown "remarkable improvement from 181 to 52 in the ranking this year," it said.
The World Bank has been finalising the rankings on the basis of around 200 parameters, regular visits in the building department and taking minute feedback from applicants and stakeholders involved, the SDMC said.
"This substantial improvement has been possible due to concerted efforts made during the last three years which helped in the reduction in the number of processes, simplification in the application form and preparation of an online common application form," it said.
It may be noted that economists exert the maximum pressure for reforms on the Union government, but a substantial section of decision-making powers rests with the states. Practically, however, the 'government' that the people deal with the most in their routine lives is the civic government. For the trading class, it means a whole lot of permits and clearances. India's municipalities are also infamous for what many refer to as inspector raj — where authorities regularly raid and intimidate shop and office owners and many municipal officers make a killing through extortion.
In this scenario, if the ease of getting building construction permit in one of the most obstructionist sectors is a significant development.
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