Ladakh Chief Secy reviews deregulation under Ease of Doing Business

Ladakh Chief Secretary Pawan Kotwal chaired a meeting to review the progress of compliance reduction and deregulation initiatives under the Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) framework.

The meeting began with a presentation by Bhupesh Chaudhary, Administrative Secretary, Ladakh, which outlined key priority areas and action points aimed at enhancing the EoDB environment in the Union Territory. It also highlighted sector-specific challenges, proposed regulatory simplifications and a roadmap for implementation.

Kotwal emphasised the need to modernise, digitise and streamline regulatory frameworks to foster a more business-friendly and citizen-centric administration. He stressed the importance of prescribing the appropriate authority for building construction as per existing building laws. He further directed the adoption and implementation of the Building Operation Controlling Authority (BOCA) guidelines and the Panchayati Raj Act.

Kotwal suggested the formation of a deregulation committee to oversee the implementation of land laws, building laws, BOCA, and the Panchayati Raj Act. He directed the Assistant Commissioner Revenue (ACR), Leh, to prepare the Change of Land Use (CLU) proposal for approval from the Hon’ble Lieutenant Governor.

The Chief Secretary also directed departments to launch an online portal to simplify and digitise service delivery. He instructed that services covered under the Public Services Guarantee Act should also be integrated into the EoDB framework. Concerned departments were given a timeline of 10 days to operationalise the portal and reduce the number of checklist items required for various approvals.

The meeting was attended by Principal Secretary Sanjeev Khirwar; Additional Secretary Shashi Kant Bhagat; Chief Conservator of Forests Sajjad Hussain Mufti among others.