New Delhi, 30 Jul (IANS): Around 6.8 lakh companies registered with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) have shut, according to the recent government data.

This accounts for 36 per cent of the total firms registered with the MCA. According to the data, 6,83,317 companies, of the 18,94,146 registered firms, were closed.

The government has undertaken a "special drive" for identification and striking off of companies that had not filed their financial statements or annual returns for more than two straight financial years.

At 1,42,425, Maharashtra recorded the highest number of closed companies, followed by Delhi (1,25,937).

In FY18 and FY19, the Registrars of Companies (RoC) scrapped the names of 2,26,166 companies and 1,12,797 companies, respectively.

The special task force, set up to look into shell companies, has recommended inter alia the use of red flag indicators as alerts for identification and striking off of shell companies.