Govt to accept only online plans, to be approved within 45 days

Pratibha Chauhan

Tribune News Service

Shimla, July 23

To facilitate investors in obtaining time-bound permissions and making the procedures less cumbersome, Himachal Government will now only accept online common application forms (CAF) for investment proposals which will have to be processed within 45 days time.

The Himachal Government has issued a notification where the constitution and terms of reference of the State Level Single Window Clearance and Monitoring Authority have been changed to facilitate speedy sanctions. Now only online applications for seeking permissions for setting up a project be it in industry, power, tourism, health, agriculture or horticulture will be accepted by the State Level Single Window Clearance and Monitoring Authority. As such no papers will have to be deposited in any office and only online applications will be accepted.

Some of the major changes that have been made in the terms of reference of the State Level Single Window Clearance and Monitoring Authority is that now all projects up to investment of Rs 5 crore instead of Rs 10 crore will be placed before it.

As per the orders by Additional Chief Secretary Industry, Manoj Kumar, all these projects to be cleared by the State Level Single Window Clearance and Monitoring Authority within 45 days. Earlier, there was no time period specified for clearing or rejecting a proposal by the authority which is headed by the Chief Minister and industry minister, Chief Secretary and other senior officers from Forest, Public Works, Power, Irrigation and Public Health, Labour, Revenue, Tourism and Pollution Control Board.

The BJP regime in the state is keen to rope in big investment and for this Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur held road shows within India and abroad to invite participation from industry bigwigs for the Global Investors Meet proposed to be held at Daramshala in November.

All e-applications of industrial projects received by the State Single Window Nodal Officer will be examined and forwarded electronically to the Departmental Nodal Officer of concerned regulatory departments like electricity, irrigation and public health, forest, excise and taxation, labour and employment and others. The concerned departments will furnish necessary clearance/pre-regulatory establishment approvals/comments within seven working days from the date of its circulation.

A sub-committee under the chairmanship of the Director/Commissioner Industries and other officials from various departments will examine/recommend the proposals to the Single Window Authority within 15 days.

Even if no comments are received from the concerned departments within stipulated period the proposal will be included in the agenda of the State Level Authority and the department concerned will explain its position before the authority and the case would be decided accordingly.

Notification issued

• The government has issued a notification where the constitution and terms of reference of the State Level Single Window Clearance and Monitoring Authority have been changed to facilitate speedy sanctions. 
• Now only online applications for seeking permissions for setting up projects will be accepted. As such no papers will have to be deposited in any office.
• Now all projects up to investment of Rs 5 crore instead of Rs 10 crore will be placed before it.