Kolkata, Sep 23 (IANS): Start-up companies will now find it easier to set shop in West Bengal as the state government plans to almost halve the number of forms required to be filled, state Commerce and Industry Minister Partha Chatterjee said Friday.
The state government plans to reduce the number of forms to seven from the present 15.
"All the formalities for reducing the number of forms for the start-ups are complete. The companies will have to complete only nine forms. We plan to bring it down further to seven," said Chatterjee on the sidelines of the 157th annual general meeting of the Bengal Chamber of Commerce.
During the erstwhile Left Front regime, the requisite number of forms was 99 and it took 315 days for the formalities to be completed. But the new government under Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee reduced the number to 35 which was subsequently brought down to 15.
Chatterjee, however, did not specify the number of days that would be needed for the formalities to be completed. He only said it would be less than the 315 days required earlier.
Chatterjee reiterated that the government was also mulling a holistic single window clearance process for different companies and start-ups.
Urging the industry not to keep any acquired land idle, Chatterjee said: "Please make use of the land to generate employment. If even after our requests they do not pay heed, then legal recourse might be an option."
Chatterjee said there was a lack of accurate study on the number of sick and closed units in the state. "For an accurate figure of the sick and closed units, we have asked a private institution to do a study and submit the report within three months. Work has already started."
The West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation (WBIDC) will now be asked to focus on promoting skill development in the state, Chatterjee added.
According to the minister, since the WBIDC will not be involved in acquisition of land - as per the policies of the government - it will be looking into issues of human resource and skill development.